Division
by Rj34
Summary: Set about 3 years after the end of 'Masks'. Georgie and Charlie are happily married and both have fulfilling careers having left the army behind them. However life has a funny way of putting a spanner in the works. Can they get through it together?
1. Chapter 1

Hi, I'm back (a bit sooner than I had planned!) I had an idea last night and have been thinking about it all morning, so I decided to write it. I may not be as quick to update as I was with Masks but I will do my best.

For context this story is set about 3 years after the end of Masks, Georgie and Charlie are married. Charlie is a teacher and Georgie is a carer.

Hope you enjoy!

Chapter one

Georgie opened the front door carefully and slipped inside, closing it as quietly as she could behind her. She sighed as she took off her coat and hung it on one of the hooks in the hallway, relieved to be home. It had been a long shift and she was exhausted.

Once she had slipped her shoes off she crept up the stairs, making sure to avoid the creaky ones. She didn't want to wake Amelia up and had become an expert at avoiding anything that made noise when she got home from a night shift.

She breathed a sigh of relief as she got to her own bedroom and listened, but heard nothing but the sound of Charlie snoring. Amelia was still asleep. It was still dark, although she knew that within the next half an hour the sun would start to come up and then no doubt Amelia would be awake and ready for the day. She just wanted some time with Charlie, just the two of them, before he had to get up with Amelia. She loved her job now, but it meant that she appreciated the nights she was able to sleep with Charlie even more. Often in the week she was at work during the night and he was at work during the day, so there was about an hour in between her arriving home and him getting up for work, and at the weekend if he had to get up with Amelia they had about the same. The long summer holidays were her favourite as he wasn't in a rush to get up.

She pulled her uniform off and climbed in to bed in just her underwear. She felt her tired muscles relax as she slipped under the sheets and cuddled up to Charlie's warm body. He stirred and slipped his arms around her as she turned her back to him and closed her eyes, enjoying the warmth of his body against hers.

Georgie slept for a couple of hours and then woke to the sound of birds singing outside the bedroom window. She rubbed her eyes and glanced at her bedside table; it was 8am. She rolled over and was surprised to see Charlie still beside her.

'Morning.' He whispered, his voice thick with sleep. 'She's still asleep, can you believe it?'

'Really?' Georgie whispered back, turning towards him. 'This never happens.'

'I know, right.' He whispered, planting a kiss on her lips as his hands skimmed her hips. 'Maybe we should make the most of it.'

'Mmm?' Georgie mumbled with a smile. 'And how do you suggest we do that?'

'I think you know how.' He grinned, and then rolled her on to her back, pinning her down by her wrists as he kissed her.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter two

'Georgie! Georgie!'

Georgie woke with a start as Amelia bounced up on to the bed and on top of her. 'Wake up!'

'What's up?' Georgie asked bleary eyed, just as Charlie came stumbling through the door.

'Sorry!' He apologised. 'Amelia, you know you're not supposed to wake Georgie when she's sleeping. She's been at work all night!'

'It's ok.' Georgie said, pulling the covers back to allow Amelia to join her. 'What's up, darling?'

'I wanna go to the park!' She said, wrapping her arms around Georgie's neck. 'Pleaaaase can we go to the park?'

'Er... I'll have to get dressed first.' Georgie said, planting a kiss on the little girl's cheek. 'Why don't you pop to the shop with Daddy and get some bits for a picnic, and I'll have a quick shower? By the time you get back I'll be all ready.'

'Yeah! Picnic picnic!' Amelia said, bouncing in the bed.

Georgie laughed as Amelia jumped down from the bed and ran across the landing and down the stairs.

'Slowly!' Charlie called after her, and then rolled his eyes. 'I am sorry. I didn't realise she'd come up here.'

'It's fine, I was gonna get up soon anyway.' Georgie replied. 'I just need ten minutes to freshen up. I think we're out of bread, if you get some then I'll make some sandwiches before we go.'

'You're a lifesaver.' Charlie said, kissing her quickly on the forehead before following Amelia's excited squeals downstairs.

Georgie heard them talking as Charlie helped Amelia to put her boots and coat on, and then the click of the front door as they left. Finally, she thought. She got up and crossed the hallway to the bathroom, before taking her underwear off and turning the shower on. While waiting for the water to warm up, she opened the bathroom cabinet and examined the contents.

There was one left. She took a deep breath and pulled it out, hoping that she wouldn't have to buy another box. She pulled it out of the box and discarded the wrapper in the bathroom bin before taking a seat on the toilet. Within a minute it was done, and she replaced the cap before placing it on the side.

She hated the wait. She turned her back on the test and stepped in to the shower, enjoying the sensation of the hot water running down her body. She washed her hair and then soaped herself before washing it all off and then turning the shower off. She knew it would be done by now, she was just desperate to look at it.

She wrapped herself in a towel and stepped out of the shower, almost holding her breath. She had done this so many times before and had got her hopes up, only to see that solitary white line staring at her from the test window.

But this time there were two.

Her stomach did a little flip and her hands shook as she picked the test up and examined it. There was no mistaking it this time - there they were, two dark red lines. Subconsciously she moved a hand to her stomach and held it protectively.

The sound of the front door opening made her jump, and she quickly made her way to the bedroom where she tucked the test in to the drawer of the chest by her bed. As soon as the drawer was shut she heard the sound of Amelia's footsteps coming up the stairs and she wrapped the towel around her more tightly.

'Hey.' She grinned. 'Did you get lots of treats?'

'Yeah!' Amelia smiled, her face a picture of excitement. 'Can we go now? Pleeeaaase?'

'Yeah.' Georgie said, opening her wardrobe. 'Let me just get dressed and I'll be right down.'


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter three

Georgie and Charlie walked through the park with Amelia between them, holding both their hands.

'Swing me! Swing me!' She cried, jumping awkwardly in the air.

'Alright.' Charlie replied. 'One two three..'

On three they both raised their arms and swung Amelia through the air. She squealed with delight. 'Again, again!'

'One more time.' Georgie said. 'And then we'll have our picnic.'

'Ok.' Amelia replied.

On the count of three they swung her again, and she laughed as her feet touched back down on the ground.

'Here looks like a good picnic spot.' Charlie said, and they stopped while he spread the picnic blanket out under a tree. It was quite a warm day and the sun was strong.

'I want to sit with you.' Amelia said, flopping herself in to Georgie's lap.

'Ok.' Georgie replied, smoothing Amelia's curly hair away from her face. 'Why don't you sit next to me, then I can get the food out the basket?'

Amelia obediently jumped out of Georgie's lap and sat expectantly on the picnic blanket next to her. Georgie pulled out a few sandwiches and passed one to Charlie and one to Amelia.

'Thank you.' He said, tucking in hungrily.

Georgie watched as Amelia climbed on to Charlie's lap and wrapped her chubby arm around his neck, eating her sandwich with the other hand. They were like two peas in a pod. Georgie smiled as she thought about what their own child might look like. Would they be more like her, or like Charlie? She could just picture picnics in the park with Amelia and Sam both doting on their younger sibling.

'What are you grinning at?' Charlie asked, taking another bite of his sandwich.

'Oh, nothing.' Georgie replied. 'It's just nice to see you two together, that's all.'

Once they had finished their picnic, they went to the pond and threw bread for the ducks. Georgie smiled as Charlie showed Amelia how to aim the bread on the ducks' backs. Amelia roared with laughter and Georgie couldn't help but laugh too, her laugh was infectious.

'Poor ducks.' She said. 'They don't stand a chance against you two!'

She studied Charlie's face next to Amelia's. They had the same shaped eyes, and Amelia's hair was tightly curled like Charlie's. It made Georgie feel quite emotional when she thought about how much she loved them both, and she was deep in thought as Charlie turned round and frowned with concern.

'Hey, are you alright?' He asked her, placing his hand on the small of her back.

'Yeah, I'm fine.' Georgie replied, wiping her wet eyes quickly. 'Pollen count must be high today.'

He looked at her a bit suspiciously but then turned back to Amelia who was getting over excited and about to jump in the pond with the ducks.

'Careful, darling!' Georgie said, taking her hand and pulling her back away from the edge. 'How about we go for a quick go on the swings before we head back?'

...

By the time they got home, Amelia had fallen asleep on Charlie's shoulder and he carefully lay her down on the sofa.

'She's exhausted.' He said, putting his arm around Georgie who was standing in the doorway.

'So am I!' Georgie answered. And she was. It was the exhaustion which had caused her to take the test in the first place. She felt unusually tired - it hadn't been a particularly strenuous day and it wasn't over yet, but she felt like she had been awake for days.

'You tired too, huh?' Charlie asked as she yawned. 'Still recovering from being woken up early.'

'Yeah.' Georgie said. She didn't want to tell him yet. She would wait until this evening, she had a plan already. She couldn't wait to see his face, seven months they had been trying for a baby and she knew he would be as excited as she was.

'Come on.' Charlie said, taking her by the hand and pulling her to the other sofa. 'We may as well make the most of it.'

They collapsed together on the sofa, and Georgie closed her eyes as she breathed in his scent. She pictured the three of them cuddled up on the sofa like this, their baby sleeping peacefully on his chest. She couldn't wait.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter four

Charlie sighed as he watched Amelia give Georgie a huge goodbye hug. It was his least favourite time, having to say goodbye to her. He was very grateful that Molly allowed her to stay so often, but it was still hard. When she was gone it was like there was a piece of their family missing. They worked well the three of them, and four when Sam stayed. He hoped that it wouldn't be long before he and Georgie had a baby of their own to complete their family.

'Bye, Georgie.' Amelia said as she pulled out of her embrace. 'See you next weekend.'

'Yeah see you then poppet.' She said, ruffling her hair. 'Don't forget to bring that princess costume you were telling me about.'

'I won't!' Amelia grinned, and then turned to Charlie. 'Time to go now daddy?'

'Yes, time to go.' Charlie smiled, taking her hand in his. 'See you soon.' He said to Georgie, kissing her.

'Drive carefully.' Georgie replied. 'I'll get the dinner on.'

'Thanks.' He said, and then he left with Amelia.

As soon as his car was gone down the street, Georgie slipped her shoes on and grabbed her purse. She wanted to make tonight perfect, and that meant getting Charlie's favourite dinner. It didn't take long to get to the shop and she picked up his favourite steak, some potatoes to make chips and salad. She felt sick with excitement as she paid for the food and a bottle of his favourite wine, then headed back home.

As she prepared the food she ran through the conversation they would have in her head. She couldn't wait to see his face. This was something they had both wanted for so long, and she couldn't wait to tell Amelia that she was going to be a big sister. Georgie smiled as she peeled the potatoes and imagined what Amelia would say. She pictured the three of them snuggled up on the sofa, cuddling up to her growing bump. She stopped peeling and held a hand to her stomach. The baby would only be as big as a poppy seed at the moment but she couldn't wait until it was big enough to make a bump.

...

As Charlie pulled up outside Molly's house he glanced at Amelia in the rear view mirror. She was sleeping peacefully again, still exhausted after the busy day they'd had. He turned off the car and gently pulled her out of her car seat before carrying her up the path to the front door.

It wasn't Molly who answered.

'Oh. Hi, Rob.' Charlie said as he opened the door.

Rob was Molly's fiancé. They had been together for eighteen months now, and thankfully he seemed to be taking care of her. And even though he didn't like to admit it, far better than Charlie himself ever had.

'Hi.' Rob replied, stepping forward to take Amelia from him. Charlie clenched his jaw, he didn't like handing over his daughter to another man. But as much as he found it difficult he knew that it was no different than Molly seeing her daughter with Georgie, and as Rob had never done anything wrong he had no right to say anything.

'Out for the count.' Rob grinned, and Charlie smiled back, although it was forced. 'Oh, Molly wanted to have a quick chat before you go - come in, she's just upstairs in the bathroom.'

'Oh.' Charlie said. 'Ok, no problem.'

He stepped across the threshold and in to their hallway, closing the front door behind him. Charlie glanced around at the expensive furnishings and feature glass balustrades which framed the stairs and dominated the hallway. It was as grand as his parents' house in Bath. Charlie didn't like the way it made him feel inferior. His own home was a lovely house full of love, but it was compact and basic. He had lost a lot of his assets to Molly in their divorce settlement, and a lot of what he had retained had been spent on his treatment for PTSD. It was kind of nice in a way that what he and Georgie now had, they had built up together. He had, to all intents and purposes, had to start again after selling his former home with Molly. He now paid a lot of maintenance to Molly and to Rebecca, out of choice, and that together with his modest teacher's wage meant that he was not as well off as he had been as an officer in the army. However he was far happier now, and he loved Georgie with the bottom of his heart, and that to him was worth far more than money.

'I'll take her up to bed.' Rob said. 'Make yourself at home in the living room, Molly will be right down.'

'Right.' Charlie nodded, and strode in to the living room. While he waited he looked at the photographs which littered the walls in expensive frames. They were mostly of Amelia and Molly but there were also some of Rob and Molly. She looked so happy in their photographs, and almost care free. He felt a little guilty. He had put her through so much in the last year of their marriage with his PTSD, and even for some time afterwards. He hadn't realised how much it had affected Molly until he saw her afterwards, happy with Rob and her new life. He almost couldn't remember ever seeing her look like that during their marriage.

'Hi.' Molly said as she walked through the living room door, distracting him from his thoughts. 'Do you want a drink?'

'No thanks.' Charlie replied. 'Georgie's got the dinner on, I'd better get back.'

Molly nodded. Charlie noticed her hands. She couldn't keep them still. She looked nervous.

'Is everything ok?' He asked, raising one eyebrow. 'Rob said you wanted to talk about something?'

'Yeah.' Molly exhaled, not maintaining eye contact. 'Look... Charles...'

Her voice trailed off and Charlie's heart rate raised slightly. What was she about to tell him?

'Whatever it is, just tell me.' He said.

Molly pursed her lips together and then looked him right in the eyes. 'I should have told you before, I'm sorry.' She said. 'But I didn't know how.'


	5. Chapter 5

**Thank you for the reviews, its nice to know that people are following the story. I love to read your theories so if you think you know whats going to happen, please do comment :)**

Chapter five

Georgie sat at the dining table, her phone in her hand, a tray of cold chips on the hob and both steaks spoiling on the side. It had been two hours since Charlie had left, and she hadn't heard from him. The uncertainty had brought back old feelings and although she knew in her heart that Charlie was nowhere near that place anymore, she couldn't help but worry. What if he'd had an accident and couldn't contact her? What if something had happened to Amelia?

She decided to try one more time. If he didn't answer she would have no choice but to call Molly. The phone rang and rang and then cut off. She was just scrolling through her contacts ready to call Molly when a message flashed up on the screen.

Charlie: Sorry I got caught up. I'll be back later. Don't wait up. X

Georgie looked at the perfectly laid table in front of her, and then at the ruined steak and chips on the side.

'Are you fucking kidding me?' She whispered, as tears formed in her eyes. He knew she was preparing a special meal, how could he be so thoughtless? She started to compose a message back but then deleted it. She didn't know what to say. She had gone to so much effort and she had been so excited for this moment together all day, and now he had ruined it. She felt tired, hormonal and angry, and all she wanted was to go to bed.

She emptied the plates of food in to the bin and then threw them in the sink before storming up to bed. This wasn't like him. She could count on one hand the number of times Charlie had done something thoughtless during their marriage - usually he was so thoughtful and dependable, she knew she could count on him for anything. Now she began to question herself - maybe he knew? Maybe he didn't want a baby with her after all?

She shook her head as if to get rid of the thoughts. She was being stupid. It must be the hormones, she thought as she peeled her clothes off and sank under the covers. It felt good to be off her feet. She decided that she would give him a peace of her mind when he got back, but for now she was exhausted, and all she wanted to do was sleep. Within 30 seconds she was asleep, dreaming of the little life growing furiously inside her.

...

Charlie shakily pushed his key in to the door lock, and then opened the door as carefully as he could. He regretted that last beer. In fact, he regretted the last 3 beers. He held on to the wall for support as he staggered down the hall towards the kitchen and the lingering smell of his favourite dinner.

His head was spinning and it was difficult to see in the dark. When he got to the kitchen doorway he clicked the light switch on and his eyes fell on the table, still perfectly made up for two.

'Oh, shit.' He breathed as he saw the unopened bottle of wine in the centre of the table, and the scraped plates on the side. He massively regretted going to the pub. He should have come straight home to Georgie and talked it through with her. Now he had pissed her off and he really needed her support right now, now more than ever.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter six

Georgie woke to find Charlie sitting on the side of the bed next to her, his finger tips brushing loose strands of hair from her face. She closed her eyes again and then rolled over away from him.

'I'm sorry, Georgie.' He said softly, not moving off the side of the bed. 'I really am.'

She ignored him. She was still so angry at him for being so inconsiderate. And to make matters worse she was now starving because she hadn't felt like eating dinner in the end.

'Let me explain, please.' He said, swinging his legs up on to the bed so that he was seated next to her, his back resting against the headboard.

'I'm listening.' She muttered, still not facing him. 'It better be bloody good, Charlie. I put a lot of effort in that dinner. And I was worried about you! Didn't you think about that?'

'I'm sorry.' He said again, tilting his head back and looking up at the ceiling. 'I wasn't thinking of anything to be honest.'

Georgie felt a little guilty when she detected worry in his voice. She turned over and looked up at him.

'What's up?' She asked. 'Where did you go?'

'I was at the pub.' He said, and as he saw her roll her eyes, he quickly added- 'but it's not what you think. I know I should have come home to you but I panicked and I'm sorry.'

'Panicked about what?' She asked, turning on her side and propping herself up on one elbow. He was scaring her now. She placed her hand on his leg supportively and he took it in his before giving it a squeeze.

'It's Molly.' Charlie replied. 'She... she's moving.'

'Moving?' Georgie asked. 'With Amelia?'

Charlie nodded. 'Yeah. To Canada.'

'Canada?!' Georgie exploded. 'What... why?!'

'Rob's been offered a job over there.' Charlie replied. 'It's better money, all expenses paid, Molly thinks it's a great opportunity for all of them.'

Georgie snorted. 'For her more like. When are you supposed to see Amelia?'

'Exactly.' Charlie replied. 'I just don't know what to do. She said she's going and that's that. It's all arranged.'

'She can't just take Amelia without your permission, surely?' Georgie said incredulously. 'It's not like she's moving a few hours away.'

'I don't know.' Charlie said, running his hands through his hair wearily. 'She says she can. I just don't know.'

Georgie felt a pang of guilt in her stomach for doubting him. She should have known there had to be a good reason that he was so late.

'I'm sorry.' She replied softly, moving closer to him so that her head rested on his belly.

'Why should you be sorry?' He asked. 'It's not your fault that Molly has got this stupid idea in her head.'

Georgie said nothing. She didn't really know what to say.

'What are you gonna do?' She asked eventually. 'Maybe you should see a solicitor? What about the one who dealt with your divorce?'

'I'll have to.' Charlie replied with a sigh. 'I just... I thought everything was going well, this co-parenting thing. Amelia is happy, she has two families who love her. Why would Molly rip that away from her? From all of us?'

As his voice wobbled, Georgie took his hand in hers and stroked the side of his thumb with hers. She hated seeing him upset especially when there was nothing she could do.

'Charlie.' She said, squeezing him to her. 'We'll sort this. There's no way she can just leave and take Amelia with her without your permission. You're her Dad.'

Charlie nodded, placing his arm around Georgie and holding her to him tightly as if he never wanted to let go.

'You're right.' He said, leaning down to kiss her. 'Thank you.'

Georgie smiled sympathetically as his lips brushed hers.

'It's gonna be ok.' She said. 'You're a good Dad. The best. Any Court will see that.'

'If she wants a fight then fine.' He said, more assertively. 'I'll go for custody. How about that? Me, you, Amelia? The three of us?'

'If that's what you think is best for her.' Georgie nodded. 'Then I'll support you, of course I will. I love her like she's my own.'

'What would I do without you?' He asked, kissing her again.

He enveloped her in his arms and held her tightly to him. Georgie imagined their tiny baby between them, it's little heart beat racing.

'I was beginning to wonder why it was taking so long for us to... you know.' He said, glancing down at her stomach. 'But they say everything happens for a reason and all that.'

'What d'ya mean?' Georgie asked, confused.

Charlie paused. 'I know how much you want a baby of our own.' He said. 'And I do too, you know that.'

'Charlie...' Georgie said, her heart pounding in her chest.

'But maybe we should just put it on hold for a bit? Not for long... just until we can work out what we're going to do? I don't think all these solicitors fees are going to be cheap. And all this stress wouldn't be good for you anyway if you were pregnant.'

'No.' Georgie whispered.

'I'm sorry.' He said, misunderstanding her. 'I don't want to disappoint you. But I knew you'd understand. When all this is over we'll try again.'

Too late, Georgie thought.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter seven

In the early hours of the next morning, Georgie fell in to bed after another night shift. She was already feeling the strain of growing another person, it amazed her how the baby was still just a small bunch of cells but was having such an effect on her body already. She was used to all sorts in her job, bodily fluids of every description and it had never bothered her at all before. Yet tonight she'd had to deal with a bit of a situation and it had turned her stomach so much, someone else had to take over.

She curled up on her side with her arms protectively framing her stomach. It was still perfectly flat, there were no external signs of her pregnancy just yet. She lay in the dark and watched Charlie as he slept; a chink of light from the street light at the front of the house highlighted his features. She wished she had just told him yesterday, but it hadn't been the right time. Now with the bomb Molly had dropped, Georgie wasn't sure if the right time would ever come. She had planned it for so long and she didn't want to just come out with it, especially when Charlie had said he wanted to put things on hold.

Although she was exhausted, her mind was buzzing and she couldn't sleep. She tried to shut her eyes but her mind just wouldn't stop. She began to worry. What if Charlie didn't want this baby? What if it caused an issue with his battle for Amelia and he resented it? She was so deep in worry that she didn't even notice she was crying. Suddenly she jumped as Charlie stirred and wrapped his arms around her sleepily.

'Hey, what's wrong?' He mumbled, tucking his chin in to her neck.

'I dunno.' Georgie replied, relaxing in his arms. 'I just... I'm having a moment.'

Charlie nuzzled in to her neck and held her tightly to him.

'Why are you crying?' He whispered in to the dark. 'Tell me.'

Georgie's heart was thudding in her chest and he could feel it against his body. He opened his eyes and pulled away from her before turning her over to face him.

'Talk to me.' He said. 'Please.'

Georgie took a deep, shaky breath. She didn't want to tell him now, not like this. She opened her mouth to speak but then closed it again. She wanted it to be a happy occasion, not a sad one.

'Just a bad shift.' She replied finally, and he pulled her in to his chest. He was so warm and the gentle thud of his heart against her cheek calmed her.

'Is this about what I said yesterday?' He asked. 'About putting things on hold?'

'I guess so. Partly.' She whispered.

'I didn't want to upset you.' He said. 'I do want a baby with you, more than anything. But I want to do it right. I don't want to make the same mistakes I made with Rebecca and Molly. I want to be there for you, 100%. I don't want you to feel unsupported because I'm wrapped up in a bloody court battle. Most of all I don't want to fuck things up again and lose you. I want to be with you for the rest of my life.'

Georgie couldn't help but smile. It was what she wanted more than anything too. She just wished that life would be on their side for a change. There always seemed to be some sort of obstacle to get over.

'When I've got things sorted with Amelia then I'll have 10 babies with you, if you want.' He grinned, and she laughed.

'I'd probably be happy with just 2 or 3.' She replied, and he kissed her.

'Probably more sensible.' He said, then his face grew more serious again. 'I'll call the solicitor first thing this morning and see when I can get over there. Would you come with me? One day after work?'

'Yeah.' Georgie replied. 'I'm only doing nights this week. And it's an emergency anyway so I can swap shifts if necessary.'

'Thank you.' He said.

They lay together, their bodies entwined, until Charlie's alarm went off. Georgie felt him pull out of her embrace and get out of the bed carefully as he always did, in an attempt not to wake her. But she felt the loss of him more than ever that day. She wished so much that he could stay. She let her mind drift off again and she was dreaming of the baby again, of the little bunch of cells that was multiplying at great speed inside her. Then she saw herself pushing a buggy down the road, her little bundle of joy wrapped up in a blanket inside. On the other side of the road was Charlie - he was holding hands with Amelia, and although Georgie tried to get to them it seemed as though they were just getting further and further away. Georgie called out and Charlie turned to look at her, but his face was expressionless. She called him again, but soon he and Amelia were so far away she could barely catch them up.

Georgie sat up in bed with a start, her eyes wide and her breathing unsteady. When she realised it was just a dream she lay back against the headboard with her eyes closed, concentrating on breathing in and out, trying to think of something - anything - that would break down the feeling of unease that she felt deep inside her.


	8. Chapter 8

Note - Thank you to all the recent (mostly) positive reviewers! I notice that the last chapter in particular appears to have got a couple of people's backs up. Whilst everyone is of course free to feedback as they wish I will say that this story is clearly sign posted as a Georgie and CJ pairing. There is a photo of them on the cover and the description also makes this clear. If you're definitely not a fan of the pairing then I am not sure why you would put yourself through reading the story and then writing a disgruntled review about how awful you think they are together. Writers put a lot of thought and time in to their work, and it can be a bit upsetting when people describe it for example, as 'drivel', because they don't like the couple you are writing about. It would be really nice if you thought about the actual people behind the stories you are reading before writing negative and sometimes personal comments. There are plenty of Molly and CJ and Elvis and Georgie stories on this board, in fact they far outnumber Georgie and CJ stories so there really is no need to read a story about a couple you clearly hate.

To the actual fans of the story, please do keep reading and thank you as always for your support :) I won't stop writing just because of a handful of negative reviews.

Chapter eight

Georgie was curled up on the sofa with a book when she heard Charlie's key in the lock. It was always a relief to hear him arrive home. She smiled as she heard the front door open and close, and then his footsteps down the hallway towards the living room.

'Hi.' He smiled as he emerged in the doorway.

'Hey.' She smiled, stretching and placing the book down on the side. 'Good day?'

'Yeah, ok.' He replied. 'I called the solicitor, I've got an appointment on Friday at 4.30. Can you make it?'

'Of course.' Georgie replied. 'Did they say what happens next or anything like that?'

'Not really.' Charlie answered, kicking his shoes off in the hallway and then padding across the living room towards her.

Georgie moved over for him and he sat beside her on the sofa, draping his arm casually across her shoulders.

'They said we'd go through everything on Friday and go from there. She can't just take Amelia without my permission though.'

'Oh that's great.' Georgie sighed, leaning her head on his shoulder. 'We'll sort this. Don't worry.'

'Yeah.' He replied. 'I just want her here with us, you know. The thought of losing her is... unbearable.'

'I know.' Georgie answered, and linked her fingers through his before squeezing his hand. 'But it won't come to that. I'm sure of it.'

Charlie was quiet for a few moments. Georgie could sense that something was still troubling him.

'What's wrong?' She asked him.

Charlie's stomach turned. It was as if she could read his mind sometimes. She always seemed to know when he was holding something back.

'I'm just worried...' he began. 'That... if she brings up my PTSD they'll use it against me. It's all in my medical records, when I almost...' He didn't like to say it.

Georgie squeezed his hand again. 'That was a long time ago.' She said. 'You're better now. There's no reason why that would count against you. You've never let Amelia down, not since the day she was born. You're a good Dad, Charlie.'

He nodded. He still wasn't convinced, and to be honest even Georgie wasn't as sure as she sounded that Charlie's medical history wouldn't affect whatever decision the Court made. He had suffered from severe PTSD for a long time - but he had in the end sought help, and he had got through it. Since Amelia was born he had worked hard as a Dad and been very careful not to let things get on top of him again. Georgie hoped that would be enough. They had looked after Amelia for a long period twice when Molly was on tour, and both occasions had gone very successfully. It was after the second that Georgie and Charlie had decided they were ready to try for a baby of their own.

'I'll get some dinner on.' Georgie said, placing her hand gently on his forearm as she got up from the sofa. She was starting to feel hungry, and the last couple of days she had noticed that if she left it too long, hunger turned to nausea. She didn't want to risk it.

She pulled a frying pan out of the cupboard and some chicken out of the fridge, and began to chop it in to the frying pan. The texture of the raw chicken on her fingers made her feel sick, and she chopped it as quickly as she could, trying to think of other things to take her mind off it. As she had just about finished she heard Charlie's footsteps behind her and she turned while washing her hands.

'Are you Alright?' Charlie asked. 'You look a bit.. pale.'

'Yeah I'm fine.' Georgie said dismissively as she dried her hands. 'Curry ok?'

'Lovely. Thanks.' He replied, taking two glasses out of the cupboard and pulling a half finished bottle of wine out the fridge.

'Oh not for me, thanks.' Georgie said. 'I'll have to leave in a couple of hours for work.'

'You normally have a small glass?' He asked.

'Yeah... but I'm not really in the mood tonight.' She said. 'You have it, there's not much left anyway.'

Charlie shrugged, and poured the contents of the bottle in to his own glass. Georgie studied his face for signs that he suspected something, but to her relief there was nothing.

How she hoped that the meeting on Friday would be positive. She didn't want to have to keep this from Charlie any longer - it was already difficult hiding it from him, and she wanted him to know. She just didn't know how, given what he had said. She resolved to tell him at the weekend, no matter what the outcome of the meeting. He had to know.

'Are you going to speak to Molly about... you know? Custody?' Georgie asked as she poured the jar of curry sauce in to the pan.

'I'll see what the solicitor says first.' Charlie said, running his hands through his hair wearily. 'I don't want to make things worse than they already are. I wasn't very polite when I left her house.'

'Well that's to be expected.' Georgie replied, stirring the contents of the pan. 'She told you she was going to take your daughter to the other side of the world, she can't have expected that you would be happy about it.'

'Mmm.' Charlie said, taking a sip of his wine.

He went quiet and Georgie glanced round at him. He was staring in to space towards the kitchen window, lost in his own thoughts. Seeing his blank expression brought back memories for Georgie, of all the times he had sat at that table at the beginning of their relationship, consumed by PTSD and depression. She couldn't deny that she was worried. What if this triggered a massive set back for him? She knew herself that you were never truly 100% free of PTSD. You could learn how to get yourself free from the past and focus on the future, but the memories were always there. She would be lying if she said she never thought about losing Elvis, or her ordeal in Kenya. She had learnt to live with it and had moved forward with her life to a point that she was happy again, but those experiences and the devastation they had caused her would always be a part of her.

'Maybe she won't even go through with it.' Georgie said hopefully, stirring the pan again before pulling a chair away from the table and sitting down opposite Charlie. 'Now she knows you're not on board with it.'

'I think that will just make her want to do it even more.' Charlie sighed, taking her hand in his. 'I knew it was too good to be true, the way things are. All good things have to come to an end eventually.'

Georgie pursed her lips together and squeezed his hand. 'Not us.' She promised. 'I'm not going anywhere.'


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter nine

Friday came, and Charlie found himself clock watching for most of the day. He went through the motions in his lessons but he was distracted. All he wanted was to get to 3.30pm so he could go home, pick up Georgie and leave for the appointment. He felt both nervous and hopeful at the same time. Nervous that he didn't know what the solicitor was going to say, but hopeful that he might be able to suggest something that would put his mind at rest. Maybe he would even know how to get Molly to stop all this, and things could carry on the way they were, lots of access for both of them. If not then he was determined not to let her go. He would rather have full custody of Amelia than let Molly take her across the Atlantic.

Just before he was due to leave one of his students, Jack, stayed behind. Charlie eyed him as he packed his bag and the other students left one by one. Jack packed his bag a lot more slowly than the others. Before long the classroom was empty apart from him and Charlie.

'Everything alright, Jack?' Charlie asked. He had noticed something wasn't right with him earlier in the week, but when he had asked him he had just brushed it off. He had been meaning to ask him again - just not today, when he was in so much of a rush. But he couldn't ignore the look of worry on his student's face.

Jack hesitated and then slung his bag over one shoulder, not maintaining eye contact with Charlie.

'You can talk to me.' Charlie said softly, sitting on the edge of his desk. 'It's alright, mate.'

Jack sighed and then looked up at him. His eyes were red and bloodshot, the kid looked like he hadn't slept for weeks. He reminded Charlie of a young soldier who had just started army training, exhausted from their new routine and lack of sleep. If Jack was only 2 years older he would be old enough to join up, Charlie thought to himself.

'It's...' Jack began, and his voice trailed off. 'I um...'

Charlie sat patiently, waiting for him to talk.

'It's my Dad.' Jack said eventually. 'He's left us. Me and my Mum.'

'I'm sorry to hear that, Jack.' Charlie replied. And he was. Jack would be starting his exams in a few weeks, and Charlie knew this would be a massive distraction for him.

'He's met someone else, apparently. How could he be so selfish, leaving my mum?'

Jack sounded angry all of a sudden. Charlie watched as he clenched his fists and then buried them in his pockets. Charlie was glad he was opening up to someone. He himself knew all about the consequences of keeping things bottled up.

'Well relationships aren't that straightforward.' Charlie answered honestly. His thoughts wandered for a moment to Sam. He wondered if Sam had felt this way when Charlie and Rebecca had split up. Of course he was younger - but he still felt a pang of guilt.

'Sometimes people just grow out of love.' He answered honestly. 'And they can't help it.'

'But marriage is forever!' Jack protested, and Charlie smiled slightly at his naivety. 'He should have stayed. It was his job to stay.'

'Maybe your Mum and Dad had been unhappy for a while.' Charlie suggested softly. 'And they decided that the kindest thing to do for everyone was to live apart. But they both still love you Jack, and just because they don't love each other anymore shouldn't affect their relationship with you.'

Charlie watched as Jack took a deep breath and swallowed back tears. He was trying to be brave but he was distraught and it was consuming him.

'It's ok to cry, Jack.' Charlie said. 'And you absolutely should talk to someone about all this. Why don't I put you in touch with someone who can help you get through this? There is a special department you can go to in to school to talk to someone.'

'I'm talking to you, Sir.' He replied.

'I know.' Charlie said. 'And of course I'm here any time you need to talk. But you need to talk to someone who is properly trained to help you. This is a big thing, especially so close to your exams. They'll help you get your head straight.'

'Ok.' Jack said, and nodded. 'Thanks, Sir.'

'Any time.' Charlie said, clapping him on the shoulder as he walked past him towards the door.

Charlie watched him go. Suddenly his eyes fell on the clock on the wall and he grabbed his coat from behind his desk. He was late. As he practically ran down the stairs, across the car park and got in the car he called Georgie.

'Hi.' She said. 'Are you ok?'

'Yeah, yeah.' He replied. 'Sorry Georgie I'm running a bit late, got held up with a student. Can I meet you there instead?'

'Yeah sure.' Georgie replied.

'You know where the office is, right?' Charlie asked.

'Yep.' Georgie said. 'I'll leave now.'

'Great.' Charlie said, looking at the clock on the dashboard. 'You'll probably beat me there.'

He pulled out of the car back and drove towards the solicitor's office, Sam still on his mind. He was doing well now, doing his GCSEs - soon he was going to start his A levels, and he wanted to be a doctor. Charlie was immensely proud. Despite his absence in the early years of Sam's life, somehow Charlie had managed to repair their relationship and they were now quite close. Sam had turned out fine, despite his parents being separated - he supposed that had a lot to do with the fact that Rebecca and Charlie had remained amicable as much as possible. Charlie clenched his jaw as he thought about Amelia and whether she would be so lucky.

As he pulled up in the car park round the corner from the solicitors office and began to walk round, Charlie was so deep in thought that he didn't even notice whether Georgie's car was in the car park. He got to the front doors of the solicitors office and glanced at his watch. There were 2 minutes until the appointment, he had arrived just in time. Still, he was later than he would have liked - the military had ingrained the importance of time keeping on him. To arrive at the time of an appointment was late, in his books. He had hoped to arrive 10 minutes early. At least Georgie would be here already.

He swung open the glass door and strode up the stairs towards the waiting area. He had been here before but it felt different this time, unfamiliar. Last time he had been so mentally unsettled that he had barely registered his surroundings. He was stronger now. Not the same person as before, but different.

'Hi.' He said as he approached the desk. 'Charles James, I'm here for an appointment at 4.30. My wife should already be here...' He glanced around the waiting area, but couldn't see her. It was empty.

'Hello.' The receptionist smiled. 'Liam will be with you in a few minutes. Your wife hasn't arrived yet.'

'Oh.' Charlie replied. 'Maybe she got stuck in traffic. Thank you.'

He sat down in one of the chairs, still wearing his jacket. He felt unsettled now. Georgie should have been here ages ago - their home was only 10 minutes away. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and after checking that he wasn't going to disturb anyone, dialled her number. It rang and rang but no reply. He kept his eyes on the door waiting for her to arrive. Where was she?


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter ten

'Mr James?' Liam smiled as he opened the door to his office. Charlie stood up, taking his eyes off the entrance door and holding out his hand to shake his solicitor's firmly.

'Hi.' Charlie said. 'Sorry I um... my wife should be here but I think she's got stuck in traffic.'

'No problem.' Liam said, straightening his tie. 'Why don't we make a start and she can join us when she arrives?'

'Yeah that would be good.' Charlie replied, following him in to his office.

'Take a seat.' Liam said. 'You look well, it's good to catch up. Although, shame about the circumstances.'

It felt strange to be back here. Charlie's eyes fell on the chair - that same chair he had sat in when speaking to Liam about his divorce. He wondered if he had been able to tell how dire Charlie's mental state had been at the time.

'Yeah.' Charlie replied. 'Thanks.'

They sat down, the desk between them. Charlie couldn't help but notice the feeling of unease he felt when he looked at the empty chair next to him. The chair that Georgie should have been sitting in. He heard a distant siren and took a deep breath, trying to squash the anxious feeling in the pit of his stomach. He was being ridiculous - there was probably a perfectly reasonable explanation. If something had happened, she'd have called.

'So.' Liam said. 'You're having trouble with your ex, Molly, is that right?'

'Thats pretty much the size of it.' Charlie sighed. 'She wants to take our daughter, Amelia, to Canada. Permanently.'

'Ok.' Liam replied, opening his notepad and picking up his pen. 'First things first. You have parental responsibility for Amelia, that's right?'

'Yeah.' Charlie replied. 'I'm named on the birth certificate.'

'Great.' Liam replied, jotting down a quick note on his pad. 'So.. Molly cannot just take Amelia out of the country without your consent. If she was to do so, it would be classed as abduction and she would be breaking the law.'

Charlie breathed a sigh of relief. He nodded. 'I hoped that would be the case.'

'However...' Liam continued. 'If she was to apply to the Court for an Order, and the Court agreed that it was in Amelia's best interests to go, then she could take her without your consent.'

Charlie clenched his jaw at the thought of it.

'It wouldn't be easy for Molly to get that Order. But it would be possible. I can't promise you what the outcome is likely to be because there are no set rules on cases of this type, but I can tell you that the Court would take in to account a wide range of factors in making their decision.'

'Such as?' Asked Charlie. His heart pounded hard in his chest at the thought of his medical records being disclosed.

'Well there would obviously be travel considerations - how easy it would be for you to visit, that sort of thing... the positives and negatives for Amelia specifically such as schools, quality of life, etc... and of course what the Courts think is best for her in terms of contact. Lots of different factors, including anything else they consider relevant to their decision.'

'Like my medical history?' Charlie muttered without meaning to.

Liam scribbled on his pad again and then looked up at Charlie. 'Such as?' He asked.

Charlie sighed. He didn't want to talk about it, but he knew he had to tell Liam everything if he was to have the best chance of getting custody of Amelia.

'A few years ago, around the time of my divorce..' He began, folding his hands in his lap to stop himself from fidgeting. 'I went through a tough time, mentally. I was suffering from PTSD. You're aware of my time in the military?'

'Yes.' Liam replied. 'And did you receive treatment?'

'Yeah.' Charlie replied. 'I've been in recovery for a long time now. And Georgie - my wife - is a massive support to me. I know, with her by my side, I will never slip back in to that position again.'

Liam nodded. 'I understand.' He said. 'The Court may take it in to account but from experience, as long as you're in a good place mentally now and are taking steps to take care of your mental health, it shouldn't really affect things too much.'

'Good.' Charlie replied, feeling as though a massive weight had been lifted off his shoulders. 'That's good. Really good.'

'So what happens now?' Charlie asked. 'Molly is under the impression she can just leave, with Amelia, and there's nothing I can do.'

'I'll send a letter in the first instance, advising her that I'm acting on your behalf and under no circumstances do you give consent for Amelia to leave the country.' Liam said. 'I'll draft that up quickly this evening before I go and she should receive it in the post on Monday. Then it's up to her to seek a Court Order. If she makes an application, we will oppose it. But I would recommend that if it comes to that, you try mediation first. I have to warn you that defending a Court application could become very costly.'

'Whatever the cost, it doesn't matter.' Charlie replied. 'I just want my daughter.'

'I know.' Liam answered. 'But mediation would be best for everyone - if you can come to an agreement with Molly out of Court, it would help to keep things a lot more amicable.'

Charlie nodded. Amicable almost felt laughable right now - he wasn't sure that Molly would ever speak to him again.

'And what if she stops me seeing her?' Charlie asked. 'In the meantime?'

'Well again, mediation could help.' Liam said. 'But if not, and she won't allow contact then we could seek a Court Order to compel her to.'

'Ok.' Charlie replied. 'I'm due to have her next weekend so if I have any issues I'll be in touch.'

'Great.' Liam replied, closing his notepad as if to mark the meeting finished. 'Well, I'll get that letter out today and if you hear anything further from her or would like to just talk anything through, do give me a call.'

'Thanks.' Charlie replied. 'I will.'

He rose from his chair, feeling a lot more positive than he had when he arrived. Then his eyes fell on the empty chair next to him again. She still hadn't returned his call or even sent a text - where was she?

Charlie shook hands with Liam and left, saying goodbye to the receptionist as he left. He began to walk to the car park, trying to call Georgie as he did so but now it wasn't even ringing, it just went straight to voicemail. He took a deep breath and angrily exhaled. If there wasn't a good reason for her missing the meeting he was going to be seriously pissed off. She knew how important this meeting was, why hadn't she turned up?

His thoughts turned to driving home - maybe he would see her by the side of the road on the way back, broken down - perhaps she had left her phone at home. He pressed the unlock button on his key fob and was about to get in when his eyes caught it, shining in the corner of the car park.

Georgie's car.

But Georgie was nowhere to be seen.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter eleven

Charlie wandered around the town centre for a bit, trying to find her. Her car was still unlocked but none of her belongings were inside it. Her phone was still ringing straight through to voicemail and he was beginning to get really worried. He didn't really know what to do - she had driven here, her car was cold, the solicitor's office was only a short walk from the car park.

When he got back to his car he sat in the drivers seat, the engine still off, unsure of what he should do. Maybe he should go back to the solicitor's office, check that she hadn't got the time wrong? He shook his head. No, he didn't want to give the wrong impression. Maybe she had for some reason gone home without her car? If she wasn't at home then he didn't know what to do.

He was about to start the engine when his phone lit up with a number he didn't recognise. He started at it for a couple of seconds before answering the call and holding the phone to his ear.

'Hello?' He answered.

'Hi, is that Mr James?'

'Speaking.' He said abruptly. 'Who is this?'

'Hi Mr James, it's Karen from the general hospital. I'm just calling to let you know that we have your wife here.'

Charlie's stomach turned. 'Georgie?'

'Yes.' Karen replied. 'Don't panic, she's ok, but she's asked us to call you. Are you able to get over to us?'

'Yeah.' Charlie replied. 'Of course. I'm on my way.'

'She's in AE.' Karen replied. 'If you come to the front desk and ask for her, someone will bring you through.'

He ended the call, before starting the engine and roaring out of the car park.

He felt sick with worry. They said that she was ok - but what did that mean? It couldn't be that minor or she wouldn't be in hospital - and she would have called him herself, surely? He suddenly realised that he should have asked what had happened.

Within 15 minutes he had arrived. It took him another 5 minutes to find a car parking space and by the time he had parked he was quite pissed off. He clenched his jaw and took a deep breath, trying to calm down. He wouldn't be any good to Georgie if he was like this.

Once the car was locked he marched across the car park, following the signs to AE. He stuffed his hands in his pockets as he got to the front desk and joined a queue full of people. None of them looked very ill or injured. He felt annoyed again that he was wasting time when he should be with Georgie. He took a deep breath and resigned himself to the fact that he would have to wait. Georgie was ok - the nurse had said - if things had changed no doubt she would have called him back.

'Hello.' The receptionist said as he got to the front of the queue.

'Hi. Charles James, my wife Georgie James has been brought in.'

'Ok, no problem.' The receptionist said breezily while clicking the computer mouse a few times. 'Take a seat and someone will come out shortly to take you through.'

'Thanks.' He said, sitting down on the nearest empty seat to the desk and leaning forwards, his hands clasped between his legs.

It felt like an eternity before someone came. When they finally did, he had been just about to go back up to the desk and ask what was going on. Surely it couldn't be that difficult to find her himself.

'Mr James?' A voice he recognised to be Karen broke him out of his thoughts and he looked over to the double doors where she was standing. He stood up and nodded.

'Come this way.' Karen smiled, opening one of the doors as she began to walk through it.

'Thanks.' He said, following her through towards the cubicles. 'Is she ok? What's happened?'

'Georgie's had a bit of a fall and a bump to the head.' Karen said. 'But she's doing well. We're just waiting for a portable scanner and then we'll do a quick scan, just to make sure everything's ok.'

'Ok.' Charlie replied, following her through to the cubicles.

Karen opened the curtain and Charlie saw her straight away - his eyes widened in shock.

'Jesus, Georgie.' He said, rushing forward and taking her head in his hands gently.

'I'm ok.' She said with a weak smile as his thumbs skimmed across her face gently. 'Honestly it looks worse than it is.'

'What happened?' He asked, gently smoothing her hair back off her forehead which was an array of purple and blue.

'I'll leave you to it.' Karen said. 'Shout if you need anything.'

'Thank you.' Georgie replied as the curtain closed behind the nurse. Then she turned back to Charlie and leant back against the pillows, before wincing as the back of her head stung on contact with the material.

'I'm so stupid.' She said. 'I don't even know what happened, it sounds ridiculous. One minute I was just closing the car door and the next minute I woke up on the floor. They think I passed out and banged my head on the way down.'

She winced as Charlie's hands got a bit too close to the bruise.

'Sorry.' He said, taking her in his arms and holding her a lot more gently than he really wanted to. Georgie relaxed in his embrace.

'Why though?' He asked. 'Why would you just pass out like that? Aren't you feeling well?'

'My blood pressure's a bit all over the place.' Georgie said. 'That's all they found. Nothing to worry about.'

'Well it doesn't look like nothing to worry about.' Charlie frowned, examining the huge bruise across her forehead and around her eye again. 'You've got a bloody black eye!'

'Yeah I know, decked by my car, eh?' She joked.

'Why didn't you call me sooner?' Charlie asked.

'Because I thought I'd be fine... but when I got up off the floor I still didn't feel right and I couldn't remember what happened so someone took me in to the coffee shop across the road and called an ambulance. It was all a bit embarrassing. And I knew you'd be in the meeting with the solicitor shortly and I thought, I'll call you when I get here otherwise you'll worry. But then my phone died.'

'Of course I'd bloody worry.' Charlie replied. 'Why do you always have to be so stubborn?'

Georgie shrugged and smiled, and he wrapped his arms around her again, pulling her close.

'How did the meeting go?' She asked. 'I'm so sorry I missed it.'

'It's hardly your fault.' He replied. 'And it was fine. He's going to write a letter to Molly confirming that I don't give her permission to take Amelia over there. She'll have to apply for a Court Order if she wants to go.'

'Oh that's good.' Georgie replied. 'That means we have plenty of time. And you don't have to worry about her just going.'

'Yeah.' Charlie said. 'Yeah, it's a bit of a relief.'

'I'm sure she will reconsider when she knows you're serious.' Georgie said.

They were interrupted by the sound of the curtain being whipped open, and a porter pushed the scanner in to the room. Georgie's heart began to pound. He still didn't know about the baby.

'The doctor will be in shortly to do the scan.' The porter said, and Georgie nodded. 'Thank you.'

'What's that?' Charlie asked, raising an eyebrow. 'Are they going to look inside your head with that thing? I think it might take a bit more than that tiny thing to see through your stubborn nut.'

'Oh cheers!' Georgie said, but she couldn't help but smile. 'No, it's not. It's an ultrasound machine.'

Charlie nodded in acceptance, but then his brow furrowed and he looked back at the machine again.

'An ultrasound machine? What for?'

Georgie bit her lip and took a deep breath. Her eyes connected with his and slowly, without taking her eyes off him she took his hand in hers and moved it across to her stomach where she placed it gently.

Charlie's eyes widened and he opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out. Georgie felt his thumb skim over her stomach and it gave her butterflies.

'You're pregnant?' He croaked eventually.

Georgie nodded. 'Yeah.'

He didn't say anything else, and she prompted him, her heart practically in her mouth. 'Say something.' She said.

And then to her relief, a smile broke out across his face, and she smiled back.

'Well it's bloody brilliant, of course.' He said. 'I just can't believe it.'

'Neither could I.' Georgie said. 'And then when you said... well... I didn't know how to tell you. I've been worrying about it all week.'

'All week? Why didn't you tell me straight away?' Charlie asked, his hand still pressed to her stomach as if it was stuck with glue.

'I wasn't sure... how you'd react.' Georgie said. 'You said you wanted to stop trying for a while and then all of this with Amelia... I didn't want another thing on your mind.'

'But this is good news, Georgie.' He said, still smiling. 'Our first baby, together. A little brother or sister for Amelia and Sam.'

He took her in his arms again and squeezed her tightly, being careful to avoid the bruises on her face.

'Please don't keep things from me.' He said. 'I wish you'd just told me straight away.'

'I was going to.' Georgie said. 'But then you didn't come home and... and then you said what had happened with Molly and I wanted to make it special, save it for a better day.'

'I'm sorry.' Charlie said, realising exactly why she had made such an effort with dinner that night, as his hand found it's way back to her stomach again as though they were magnetic.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter twelve

Georgie watched the monitor expectantly as the doctor moved the probe across her stomach, her hand enveloped in Charlie's. She knew it was early but she had almost expected to see the baby on screen straight away, its little heart beating away inside her. She watched as the doctor moved the probe left and right, trying to find it. After a few minutes the doctor replaced the probe on its stand and turned to them both.

'I'm going to need you to drink some more water and then we'll try again.' She said.

'Is something wrong?' Charlie asked. Georgie could hear a hint of panic in his voice and it made her feel uneasy.

'No, going by the date of Georgie's last period the pregnancy is probably only about 6 weeks along, and it's quite normal to struggle to find it at that stage. If we don't have any luck we might have to get you booked in for an internal scan, just to make sure everything's ok.'

Georgie looked up at Charlie for reassurance and he squeezed her hand supportively.

'Will that be today?' He asked.

'Probably not I'm afraid, we can't do it down here and the scanning department is quite busy. There's no need to worry though - there's no pain or bleeding and baby's quite well protected in there, so the chances are it hasn't been affected by the fall at all - but we just want to take a quick look just in case. But most probably, everything is just fine. Obviously if anything changes Georgie let us know.'

'Ok, thank you.' Georgie said.

The doctor handed Georgie another glass of water and she began to drink it. The sensation of water sloshing around in her stomach made her feel a bit nauseous.

'I'll be back in about fifteen minutes.' The doctor said looking at her watch. 'If you get as much water as you can in to you, hopefully we can get the scan done this evening and put your mind at rest.'

Georgie nodded. 'Ok.'

She began to drink again as Charlie moved across to sit next to her on the bed, draping his arm around her shoulders gently.

'Ow... be careful.' Georgie said, wincing. 'The back of my head's sore too.'

'Sorry.' Charlie said, removing his arm and placing his hand on her leg instead.

Georgie's stomach told her that enough was enough and she placed the cup back down on the table, knowing that if she didn't stop drinking the whole lot would be coming back up.

'What if there's something wrong?' She asked, leaning her head on Charlie's shoulder gently.

'There won't be.' Charlie said. 'Everything will be fine. You'll see.'

'You don't know that.' Georgie said with a sigh. 'I just... I've got this weird feeling.'

'What feeling?' Charlie asked.

'Like... I just feel uneasy.' Georgie said. 'Like something's about to go off. Somethings not right.'

Charlie placed his hand affectionately on her stomach again and rubbed it gently with his thumb.

'Listen to me, everything's going to be fine.' He said. 'I won't let anything happen to you. Either of you.'

Georgie closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She felt safe with Charlie just like she always had, but she still couldn't relax. There was a niggling feeling deep inside her that something was wrong, and she just couldn't shake it.

When the doctor came back Georgie had drunk more water in one go than she ever had before, and her bladder felt ready to burst.

'Sorry,' The doctor said, 'I just got a bit held up with an emergency. We'll get this done as quickly as possible and then you can go and relieve yourself.'

'No problem, I understand.' Georgie said.

'Right.' The doctor said brightly as she took the probe off the machine and squirted more gel on Georgie's stomach. 'Let's take a look.'

Georgie was so nervous she didn't want to look. She looked at Charlie instead, he sat by her with his eyes fixed on the monitor, scanning the grainy grey and black image for signs of life. Georgie winced as the doctor pressed hard on her stomach.

'Sorry.' She said. 'The womb is really low at this stage and the embryo will be tiny so I need to try and get as close to it as I can.'

Georgie nodded. The pressure on her bladder made her feel even more desperate.

'There we go.' The doctor smiled, pointing to the screen. Georgie watched as a relieved smile spread across Charlie's face and she turned to look at the screen herself.

'There's the sac, and that tiny little grey thing there is the embryo.'

Georgie stared at the screen in wonder.

'There's no heartbeat yet but that's quite common for this gestation, nothing to worry about.' The doctor said. 'It looks like your dates are right. That's a perfectly normal embryo for 6 weeks.'

'Thank you.' Charlie said as the doctor pushed a button on the machine to print a photo, his voice slightly thick from the lump that had formed in his throat. He had never been to a scan before. He had been on tour for Rebecca's and Molly hadn't told him about her pregnancy until after she had been scanned. It was the most amazing thing he had ever seen.

'I'd like to keep you in overnight for monitoring as a precaution, because you've had quite a severe head injury.' The doctor said. 'You'll be moved up to a ward shortly and all being well, you can go home in the morning.'

'Ok.' Georgie said. 'Thank you.'

'Congratulations.' The doctor said, as she handed Charlie the grainy scan photo and left the cubicle.

Charlie held the photo in his hands, brushing his thumbs over the tiny little bundle of cells in the centre. His heart swelled at the thought of their baby, happily growing inside Georgie's belly.

'What are you thinking about?' Georgie asked.

Charlie paused, struggling to take his eyes off the photo. 'I'm thinking...' he said. 'That this is the most amazing thing I've ever seen. And I'll never be able to thank you enough for this.'

'Aww. Don't be so soft.' Georgie grinned as he bent across the bed and placed his head gently on her stomach.

Georgie closed her eyes and enjoyed the warmth of his head on her belly. She loved Charlie so much and it was such a weight off her shoulders, now that he knew and was so happy about the pregnancy. But she still couldn't ignore the niggling doubt in her mind. She had thought it was not knowing if the baby was ok, but now she knew it was fine she didn't understand why she still couldn't shake it.


	13. Chapter 13

**Thanks to all the recent readers and reviewers. Hope you are all still enjoying the story :) **

Chapter thirteen

Georgie heard him before she saw him. She was lying in bed with Charlie and she heard a noise outside.

'Charlie.' She hissed.

He was fast asleep and didn't respond.

'Charlie, there's someone outside.'

She tried to shake him but he was in such a deep sleep that he didn't even move. She tutted and got out of bed - she'd just have to deal with it herself.

She crept across the bedroom floor to the window in the dark, being careful not to make a sound. She didn't want to alert whoever it was to the fact that she was there. When she got to the window she stood by the side of the curtain and opened it very slowly, squinting her eyes in an attempt to see in to the darkness. She couldn't see anything.

Suddenly the curtain flew open and he swung in to the bedroom. It took her by surprise and she jumped back, ready to hit him.

'Hey!' He said, holding one arm up like a shield. 'Hey, what you doin'?'

She dropped her arm back down by her side and shook her head angrily.

'No, what are you doing?! You almost gave me a heart attack.'

'I'm sorry.' He said. 'But I 'ad to see ya.'

Georgie took a couple of steps back and glanced at the bed. Charlie was still sleeping soundly, oblivious to what was going on around him.

'Why?' She asked.

'Well first of all, I wanted to say congratulations an' all that.' He said, running his hands through his dark hair. 'Hopefully it will get your nose an' not Charlie's.'

Georgie grinned. 'Well thank you very much.'

'An' also I came to say... you need to watch your back, George.'

'What?' She asked.

'Watch your back.' He repeated. 'No heroics. It's not just you that ya have to think about now. Let Charlie look after ya.'

'Elvis, what are you going on about? What do you mean?'

'Just what I said.' He said. 'Watch your back, George.'

He began to climb back through the window and she tried to grab him but he was too fast.

'I've gotta go.' He said. 'Stay safe.'

And before she could say anything else he was gone.

Georgie woke up with a start. The curtain of her cubicle was open but it wasn't Elvis who was stood there.

'Breakfast?' The porter asked, holding a tray.

'Um... yeah, thanks.' Georgie muttered bleary eyed, rubbing her eyes as she sat up and pressed the button to raise the bed in to a sitting position. The porter set the tray down on the table and moved to the next cubicle, leaving Georgie alone. She felt confused. It was the first time she had dreamt of Elvis in - well, longer than she could remember. It had felt so real, and it only made the ball of anxiety she felt deep in her stomach grow even tighter.

Her stomach was growling with hunger but the smell of the porridge on her tray made her heave. She pushed it away and buttered a piece of dry toast instead. It felt like cardboard in her mouth. Frustrated, she dropped it back down on to the tray and settled for the little carton of orange juice instead.

When Charlie arrived with a fresh bag of croissants she almost ripped them out of his grasp.

'What would I do without you?' She smiled, tucking in. 'The breakfast was awful. As you can see.'

Charlie grinned. 'Yeah I thought it might be. When can I take you home?'

'I'm just waiting for the doctor to come round.' She said. 'I feel fine, just a bit sore. So hopefully we can go this morning.'

'Good.' Said Charlie. 'I missed you last night.'

'I missed you too.' She said.

They sat in silence for a few minutes as Georgie finished the croissants and Charlie just enjoyed being with her. It had been a big shock receiving that call yesterday and he was so relieved that she was ok. And now he knew she was pregnant he felt even more protective.

'Charlie.' Georgie said, as she scrunched the bag up. 'I had a weird dream last night.'

'What about?' He asked.

Georgie bit her lip. 'I dreamt of Elvis. He told me to watch my back.'

Charlie said nothing but kept his eyes on her, waiting for her to elaborate.

'I've just got this feeling.' She continued. 'That something isn't right. I just can't shake it.'

Charlie cleared his throat. 'Well you're probably just feeling a bit vulnerable because of what happened yesterday.' He said. 'I'm sure it's nothing.'

'Mmm.' Georgie said. 'Maybe it's just hormones and that.'

'Yeah.' Charlie said. 'Don't worry. I'll look after you. You know that.'

Georgie nodded and smiled, but the smile didn't reach her eyes. Charlie had to go back to work on Monday. She had been signed off work for 2 weeks but there was no way he would be able to get leave from his job except in an emergency. For the first time in her life she felt anxious about being on her own. That made her feel even worse because she didn't like depending on anyone.

Charlie noticed that she still looked uneasy.

'I was thinking.' He said. 'What if you ask your Mum to come and stay for a few days next week?'

The thought of her Mum being around filled Georgie with relief. It would be nice to have company when Charlie was at work, and she really wanted to tell her about her pregnancy in person. Georgie had always been close to her Mum, and the thought of being able to confide in her seemed perfect.

'Yeah, I'd like that.' Georgie said.

'Why don't you call her?' Charlie said. 'See if she fancies coming down on Monday for a few days. Then you won't be on your own when I'm back at work.'

'Yeah.' She said. 'That's a good idea. Thanks, Charlie.'


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter fourteen

Just as Georgie had hoped, at the very suggestion of coming down for a visit Grace had jumped at the chance. She arrived just before lunch on Monday; Charlie had only kissed Georgie goodbye and gone to work a few hours before, so she didn't have long to wait by herself.

Still, those few hours felt like days. Georgie resented what Friday's events had done to her. She had never felt like this before and she didn't understand it. Every morning she woke up with a knot of dread in her stomach, and no amount of reasoning with herself had helped.

When Georgie heard her Mum's car pull up outside she jumped off the sofa and peered through the window expectantly. The relief she felt at seeing her Mum almost compared to that she had felt when returning from a 6 month tour. She took a deep breath and walked through to the hallway before opening the front door.

'Georgie!' Grace smiled as soon as she got eyes on her daughter, but her smile quickly turned in to a shocked frown when she caught sight of the now purple and brown bruise which dominated her face. 'Whatever have ya done?!'

'I'm fine, Mum. Don't panic.' Georgie said as Grace flung her arms around her and then stepped back to take a closer look at the bruise.

'Fine?!' Grace cried. 'What d'ya mean, fine? That's not bloody fine!'

'You wouldn't believe me if I told you.' Georgie said. 'Come on, come inside. D'ya need help with your bags?'

'They can wait til later.' Grace said, hurrying her in to the house. 'Now tell me, Georgie, what on earth have ya done to your face?'

They went through to the kitchen and Georgie flicked the kettle on. She knew her Mum would be desperate for a cup of tea, and had already set two mugs on the side in expectation.

'On Friday I went in to town with Charlie.' Georgie began. 'He's having trouble with Molly so he had to go and see a solicitor.'

'Trouble? What trouble?' Grace quizzed.

'She wants to move with Amelia.' Georgie said. 'To Canada?'

'Canada?!' Grace cried. Her reaction almost made Georgie smile because it reminded her of her own reaction the week before when Charlie had told her. She was getting more like Grace than she realised.

'Yeah.' Georgie said. 'But obviously he doesn't want her to go, so he's seeing a solicitor and we'll sort it.'

Grace nodded. 'But that doesn't explain what happened to your face?'

'So I was getting out of my car and I came over a bit funny and the next thing I know I was on the floor. I must have bloody head butted the car on the way down!'

'Oh, Georgie.' Grace said, holding her hand up to inspect the bruise again.

'Mum!' Georgie said, wriggling away. 'Get off.'

'Sorry.' Grace said. 'It just looks so sore, love. I don't like to see ya in pain.'

'I'm fine now. I got checked out at the hospital and I'm fine.'

'Hospital?' Grace frowned. 'Why didn't ya tell me?! I'd have come sooner, ya know I would!'

'Well I was fine Mum, I didn't want to worry ya.' Georgie said. 'Honestly. Charlie's been looking after me. He hasn't let me lift a finger all weekend.'

Grace smiled as she watched Georgie pour the now boiling water in to the two mugs.

'He's a good man.' Grace said. 'He's always looked out for ya, hasn't he.'

'Yeah.' Georgie said, handing one of the mugs to Grace. 'Yeah he has. I'm lucky to have him.'

Her thoughts wandered to the look of amazement on his face when he had seen their baby on the screen for the first time. She couldn't help but smile.

'Mum...' Georgie said, her voice trailing off.

'What is it, love?' Grace asked. There was something different about Georgie but she just couldn't put her finger on it. With the exception of the huge bruise on her face, that was.

'I need to tell ya something else.' Georgie said, taking her own mug and holding it between her hands to warm them.

'What is it?' Grace asked, her smile fading with concern.

'I er... well, me and Charlie... we're having a baby.'

Grace let out an excited cry so loud that she made Georgie jump - she nearly dropped the cup of tea in shock. She hastily put it down on the worktop.

'Oh my god!' Grace screeched. 'I'm so excited for ya, love! When did you find out?!'

'Last week.' Georgie said.

Grace set her mug down and threw her arms around her daughter before holding her close, a huge grin plastered across her face.

'Oh I'm so proud of you, George.' She said, and when she finally released Georgie from her grip she had tears in her eyes.

'Oh, Mum!' Georgie said, wiping the tears away. 'Don't be silly! You'll set me off!'

They both laughed and Georgie wiped the tears away which had by now formed in her own eyes. Then Grace flung her arms

around her again, holding her close. Georgie closed her eyes, enjoying the familiar warmth of her Mum's embrace.

'I can't wait to be a Nanny. Oh your Dad'll be so excited!' Grace beamed. 'Well done, love. When's it due?'

'Not for ages.' Georgie said. 'It's early days I'm only 6 weeks.'

Grace reach down and rested a hand on Georgie's flat stomach.

'Is Charlie excited?' Grace smiled.

'Yeah.' Georgie said. 'Yeah, he is. We've wanted this for a long time.'

'Have ya been feeling sick?' Grace asked. 'I felt bloody awful for 3 months with all 3 of you girls!'

'Yeah a bit.' Georgie said. 'But the tiredness has been the worst. I just feel like I have no energy. It's not been great with night shifts to do but at least I have 2 weeks off now.'

'Well it's hard work, growing a person.' Grace said. 'Why don't ya go and put your feet up in the living room and I'll get some lunch for us? I'm here now, I'll take care of ya.'

'Thanks, Mum.' Georgie said, kissing her on the cheek and then walking through to the living room.

She sank in to the sofa, closing her eyes with a sigh. It was so nice to have her Mum here looking out for her again.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter fifteen

As Rob walked through the front door he was greeted by a very irate Molly, who waved a piece of paper in his face angrily.

'Look at this!' She stormed, thrusting it at him. 'Can you believe the cheek of the bloody bastard?'

Rob kicked his shoes off and frowned, taking the piece of paper from Molly who was now bright red and looked like she was about to burst with anger.

'When did this arrive? Today?' He asked as he skimmed through it.

'Yeah.' She said. 'In this afternoons post.'

Rob sighed. He had been looking forward to telling Molly that their visa applications had been approved - and that meant they could start making concrete plans for their move. Except they couldn't, because now Charles was getting in the way.

'Don't worry.' He said, handing the letter back to her. 'I'll get my solicitor on to it. We've got a lot more funds than he has to fight this, don't you worry.'

'Well I am bloody worried!' Molly said, her voice raised. 'Because all I wanna do is have a fresh start with you, and after everythin' he has to be the one to stop me gettin' it!'

Rob took her hands and pulled her towards him. He could feel her heart thumping against his chest.

'Molly.' He said. 'Calm down. Amelia will hear you.'

She leant against him and tried to relax. But she couldn't. Why was it fair for Charles to be able to move on with his life, yet she couldn't? Rob was the best thing that had happened to her since she had married Charles, and he had to take this job. It would be great for all 3 of them.

'He's doing my nut.' She said, more softly now. 'I just wish he'd fuck off in to the sunset with her, and leave us alone. I know Amelia loves him but it's Canada not pissin' Australia.'

Rob couldn't help but snigger.

'It's not funny!' Molly snapped, but even she was smiling now.

'Did anyone ever tell you how sexy you are when you're angry?' Rob grinned, and Molly slapped him playfully on the arm.

'Shut up.' She said. 'I'm tryin' to be bleedin' serious here!'

'I know, I know, I'm sorry.' Rob said, kissing her lightly on the lips.' Look, don't worry about this. I will sort it, I promise. We're going to Canada, Molly, Whatever it takes.'

'Thank you.' She kissed him again. 'What would we do without you, eh?'

...

'Sorry I'm late!' Charlie called as he closed the front door behind him and hung his coat up on one of the empty pegs.

'No worries.' Georgie replied. 'We're just in the kitchen.'

He took his shoes off and strolled down the corridor towards the kitchen. He could hear Georgie's animated voice chatting to Grace and it made him smile. She sounded a lot more like her normal self.

'Hey.' She smiled as he walked through the door. 'Good day?'

'Yeah thanks.' He said, leaning down to kiss her. 'You?'

'Yeah, it's been lovely. Mum's been waitin' on me like I'm royalty!'

'Hi, Grace.' Charlie smiled, and took a step back as his mother in law suddenly flung herself at him.

'Oh, Charlie! Congratulations!' Grace grinned, tearing up again.

'I told her.' Georgie said with a grin. 'Obviously.'

'Thanks, Grace.' Charlie said as she released him.

He opened the fridge. 'Are you hungry?'

'Yeah quite hungry.' Georgie said. 'Mum said she wants to cook for us tonight.'

'It should be us cooking for you, Grace.' Charlie said. 'You're our guest!'

'Nonsense!' Grace said. 'What d'ya fancy? You go and put your feet up and I'll get somethin' whipped up.'

'Thanks, Mum.' Georgie said, sliding off the seat and standing up with a stretch. 'I think I'll go and get my pjs on.'

'Are you sure?' Charlie asked. 'I don't mind cooking.'

'Of course.' Grace said. 'I insist.'

'Well in that case I'll go and take a quick shower.' Charlie said, and followed Georgie up the stairs.

Georgie was in the process of getting changed when he walked in to the bedroom. He came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her half naked body, tucking her hair over one shoulder as he kissed her neck on the other side. Georgie felt something stir inside her and she let out a deep breath.

'Hey.' She whispered. 'Mum's downstairs.'

'So?' He replied softly, still trailing kisses over the base of her neck. 'She's busy cooking, she won't hear a thing.'

Georgie already knew she was going to lose - she couldn't resist, and he knew it. She turned in his arms and slowly lifted his T-shirt up over his head and then over his arms, exposing his muscular abdomen. His T-shirt dropped to the floor as he unclipped her bra and then leant down to kiss the front of her neck. She had no chance of resisting him now. He leaned over to quickly shut the door behind them before effortlessly lifting her on to the bed.

Downstairs, Grace took a break from chopping onions to take a sip of wine. She heard a knock on the door and set the wine glass down with a sigh.

'Georgie?' She called. 'Charlie?'

There was no answer, so she headed to the front door herself. She opened it and was surprised to find nobody there. She frowned, looking left and right up the street before shaking her head and going back inside. She was sure she had heard someone knock at the door.

As she passed the bottom of the stairs she realised that she couldn't hear the shower running. She could hear something else though, and when she realised what it was she rolled her eyes. Maybe it wasn't the door she had heard knocking after all.


	16. Chapter 16

**Thank you for the recent reviews. Sorry I haven't been as quick to update this chapter, I am getting stuck in to my book now and trying to keep up the momentum! Usually I struggle to finish them but I am determined to finish this one so I can actually do something with it - normally they just sit on my computer unfinished for eternity.**

**In answer to someone who asked before no I'm not a professional writer, but I would love to be - so I've given myself a goal to write a proper book this year.**

**Anyway I hope you enjoy this chapter, things are about to get a bit messier. **

Chapter sixteen

'Nice shower?' Grace asked, one eyebrow raised, as Charlie and Georgie entered the kitchen.

'Uh... yeah thanks.' Charlie said, busying himself in the fridge.

'Feeling better now, George?'

Georgie glowed red at the realisation that had mum might have heard after all.

'Yeah a little better, thanks Mum.' She said, keen to change the subject. 'That smells so good!'

'I'm making my spag Bol.' Grace said.

'Lovely.' Georgie replied. 'I'll set the table.'

They ate dinner and then went through to the living room. Grace chose something to watch and she sat on one sofa, with Georgie and Charlie on the other. Charlie sat in the corner of the sofa and Georgie lay back against him, her head leaning on his chest. She sighed with contentment as he ran one hand through her hair and rested the other gently on her belly. She was tired after a day of catching up with Grace and she felt her eyes close and she began to drift off to sleep...

She woke up with a start as she heard a sudden knock on the door.

'It's alright.' Charlie said as she swung her legs round ready to get up off the sofa. 'I'll get it.'

Instead she leant back against the cushions as he left the room.

'It's a bit late for visitors.' Grace said, looking at the clock on the fireplace with a frown. 'It's almost 10 O'clock!'

'Mmm.' Georgie frowned, listening carefully as she heard the door opening.

And then she couldn't hear anything. She sat up and was just about to go and see it was when she heard Charlie close the front door again.

'Who was that?' She asked.

'Nobody there.' He shrugged as he appeared in the doorway. 'Probably just kids messing around. I'm going to get a drink, do you want anything?'

'No thanks.' Georgie said, and Grace shook her head.

Charlie headed in the direction of the kitchen and then Grace turned to Georgie.

'That's weird...' She said. 'When you were upstairs earlier I thought I heard a knock on the door. But there was no one there. I thought I'd misheard but... now I'm not so sure.'

Georgie frowned again and glanced back at the window. It was dark now and she couldn't see anything except for the dim light of the street light outside.

'Really?' She asked.

'Yeah.' Grace said.

Georgie felt that familiar feeling again. Watch your back George - that was what he had said. She was just about to get up off the sofa and look out of the window when there was an almighty smash. It all seemed to happen in slow motion - she recoiled in horror as the window completely smashed and glass shattered everywhere. Once the noise had stopped she looked down and saw it right by her feet.

'What the fuck?' Charlie cried as he stumbled in to the room. 'Jesus, get away from the window!'

Georgie got up and scrambled off the sofa to the back of the room where Grace was sitting still in shock.

'Georgie, what on earth is going on?!' She cried, and before they both knew it Charlie had left the house and run down the front steps.

'Charlie!' Georgie shouted after him, her heart thumping in her chest. 'Please don't!'

'Shall I call the police, George?!' Grace asked.

'Yeah.' Georgie said, and then she followed Charlie.

'Georgie, don't go out there! Please! Think of the baby!' Grace shouted, but it was too late - Georgie just couldn't help herself.

'Charlie!' She shouted as she got to the front steps. She couldn't see him, he had run so quickly he was already out of sight. 'Charlie?!'

She felt sick. What if he caught up with them and they finished him off? She wasn't even sure which way he had gone. She dithered on the bottom step for a few moments, running her hands through her hair anxiously, when finally she saw a figure jogging back up the road towards her.

'Charlie!' She shouted and began to run towards him. He was running through the shadows avoiding the street lights and she couldn't see his face. 'Are you alright?'

He was only about 20 metres from her when she realised that something wasn't right. He wasn't quite the right build for Charlie - he was a bit shorter, and he was wearing a hoodie with the hood up - Charlie had just left in a T-shirt. Her stomach flipped and she had a split second to decide whether she would fight or fly.

Of course, she decided to fight. She clenched her fists down by her side as he came closer, and she prepared herself.

'Oi!' His voice boomed out from the end of the road as he came round the corner. 'Don't you touch her!'

The runner stopped in his tracks and doubled back, sprinting away from Charlie. Charlie ran full pelt towards Georgie and stood next to her defiantly until the runner had gone.

'Are you alright?' He asked.

Georgie nodded, speechless. 'What is happening?!' She asked, looking up at the smashed window.

'I have no idea.' He replied. 'I can't believe I let him get away.'

'I'm glad you did.' Georgie said. 'Who knows what he might have done.'

Grace appeared in the doorway and the three of them stood there in silence for a moment, before Charlie put his arm around Georgie and began to walk back to the house.

'Come on.' He said. 'Let's go in.'

As they got to the top of the steps Grace held her hand out, the brick that Georgie had seen at her feet clasped inside it.

'What's that?' Georgie asked, looking at her other hand.

Grace held the piece of paper up, a look of terror on her face. Charlie took it from her and frowned as he read the scrawled writing on it.

'What does it say?' Georgie asked.

He held it out so she could see it.

_I know what you're doing, and you will pay. _


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter seventeen

Georgie stood in the living room doorway, staring at the ugly chipboard which was covering the broken window. Her arms were wrapped tightly around her stomach as if she was shielding their baby from the world. Every time she looked at the chipboard she felt so angry. How dare he invade their home like that?

'Why don't you come home for a bit, love?' Grace asked as she carried her bag down the stairs.

'Thanks, Mum.' Georgie said, turning around. 'But this is my home. I'm sure it's nothing, just kids messing around like Charlie said.'

Grace raised an eyebrow. 'Kids who leave threatening notes?' She said.

Georgie sighed. 'It'll be fine, Mum.'

'Is that why you're sending me home?' Grace said. 'Because it's nothing?'

Georgie looked at the floor. She hated lying to her Mum. But she was quite sure she knew who was behind this, and she was going to sort it out.

'I just don't want you to worry.' Georgie said. 'Once this has all blown over you and Dad can come and stay again.'

Grace stepped forward and wrapped her arms around Georgie, holding her tight.

'Are you sure you're alright, Georgie? I'm sure Charlie wouldn't mind if ya came back with us for a few days.'

'I'm sure.' Georgie said. 'Love ya. See ya soon.'

She waved as her Mum drove off down the road. As soon as she was out of sight, Georgie grabbed her keys and closed the front door firmly behind her. She took a deep breath and began the short drive. She would be lying if she said she wasn't nervous. But she had to do this, it all had to stop now. She was doing this for Charlie.

When she got there she breathed a sigh of relief that there was only one car on the drive. She would be able to talk about it with her alone, woman to woman. She locked the car and walked up the path towards the front door before ringing the doorbell. She answered quickly.

'Oh. Georgie.' Molly said flatly. 'What are you doing here?'

'I need to talk.' Georgie said.

'Now's not really a good time.' Molly said. 'And to be honest, after receiving that letter I'm not sure I want to talk to either of you at all.'

Georgie frowned. 'Come on, Molly. What do you expect us to do? We love Amelia, how would you feel if Charlie decided he was moving half way round the world with her?'

Molly looked at the floor and shook her head.

'Why are you and Charles allowed to be happy, but I have to miss out on my chance at happiness?' She said angrily. 'It's not fair, Georgie.'

'Look. I know you want to go.' Georgie said. 'Nobody's saying you can't be happy with Rob, that you don't deserve it. We want you to be happy Molly, we do. But we don't want to lose Amelia.'

'She's not even yours!' Molly said, her voice raised slightly. 'And soon, when you have your own, you'll drop her, I know you will.'

'We would never do that.' Georgie said. 'I promise you.'

Molly sighed. 'Look, Georgie. I just want you to go.'

'I can't.' Georgie said. 'Listen Molly I need to ask you something. How well do you know Rob?'

Molly narrowed her eyes. 'Are you for real?'

'I'm sorry Molly but I have to ask. Where was Rob last night?'

Molly paused and then shrugged. 'At home with me. Why?'

'Oh.' Georgie said. 'Are you sure, for the whole evening?'

'Yes.' Molly replied firmly. 'I don't know why you're asking and to be honest I don't really care. Just go, ok. And don't turn up here again, I'll be in touch with Charles via my solicitor.'

Georgie stepped back as if Molly had just hit her. She frowned, her stomach turning as if she had just driven over a humpback bridge.

'What?' She asked. 'But it's our weekend - Charlie will be collecting her on Friday...'

'Not this week.' Molly said firmly.

Georgie shook her head. 'Please don't do this, Molly, he'll be crushed if he doesn't see her-'

'Charles isn't my concern anymore.' Molly said coldly. 'Amelia and Rob, they're my family now. That's all I care about.'

'But Molly that's not fair on Amelia, she loves her Dad.' Georgie replied. 'Please don't do this.'

'Go, now.' Molly said, and then closed the door in Georgie's face.

Georgie stood at the front door for a moment, as if she was willing it to open. She must have got it wrong. And now she'd made it all so much worse. She didn't know how she was going to break it to Charlie that Molly was now using Amelia as a weapon.

She sighed and was just about to turn to leave when she heard steady footsteps behind her. The brisk clump clump clump up the pathway made her pulse quicken instantly and suddenly it came back to her, Friday in the car park. Now she knew why she had felt so unsettled since that day, and why she needed to watch her back. As she realised exactly what had happened, his footsteps came ever closer and she braced herself for what was to come.


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter eighteen

The sound of his footsteps coming up behind her echoed in her ears all the way back to the house. She tried to keep her eyes on the road but her mind kept wandering back to that day. She tried Charlie's phone but it went straight to voicemail. She tried again and again but still got voicemail.

'Fuck!' She cried, throwing the phone down on the passenger seat in frustration. It slid down the side of the seat but she barely even noticed. It took all her concentration to keep her eyes on the road.

As she pulled up outside the house she glanced around anxiously before jumping out of the car. As she shut the door behind her the sound of it clicking shut brought it all back, her heart pounded in her chest and she felt as though she couldn't breathe.

_She shut the car door and rummaged in her bag for the key fob to lock the doors. She sighed with frustration as she dug around in the bottom of the bag - she was forever losing her keys. Having keyless start was no good when she then had to find her keys to lock the car. Just as her fingers contacted with the cool metal of the fob in the bottom of the bag, she heard footsteps approaching behind her. She smiled. He had beat her here after all._

_'Hey you.' She grinned as she could almost feel his breath on the back of her neck, she was about to spin around when she felt that something wasn't right. Before she could do anything she felt a rough hand on the back of her head and it shoved her forcefully against the hard metal of the car. She fell to the ground dazed as she heard his footsteps sprinting away. She tried to get up but her head felt like it was splitting in two, and she could see what looked like snowflakes dancing in her eyes. She gave in, closing her eyes as she rolled back against the hard tarmac. _

This time she had the keys in her hand and she raced up the steps of the house before trying desperately to get the key in to the lock.

'Come on!' She hissed as her hand shook so violently it almost seemed an impossible task. Eventually she managed to slide it in and she pushed the door open before running inside and closing it behind her and leaning against it and... she let out the huge breath she had been holding, as she slid down to the floor, her back against the door as if to barricade herself in.

Sitting in the familiar haven of her hallway, she began to feel better. She was at home, safe - nobody could get to her here. Eventually she got up off the floor and walked slowly through to the living room, where the first thing that greeted her was the makeshift window board that Charlie had banged together the night before. An ugly reminder of the fact that actually, if he wanted to get to her, he still could.

Unsettled at the thought she quickly paced around the house, making sure that all the doors were double locked and the windows were shut. Charlie would call her back soon and she would ask him to come home - and then it struck her that she'd left her phone in the car.

'Fuck!' She muttered again, running her hands through her hair anxiously while peering at the car out of the small glass window in the front door. They had no landline and she absolutely needed her phone - What if someone tried to break in? She wouldn't even be able to call the police.

She paced back and forth in the hallway for a minute or two before making a decision. She had to get that phone. Slowly with the chain still on, she unlocked the door and opened it slowly. Everything outside was calm and quiet. And perfectly normal. She slid the chain off the door and opened it wider bracing herself for him to appear out of nowhere, but nothing of the sort happened. She relaxed slightly as she slipped outside and then began to descend the steps, all the while keeping her eyes on the whole street - she wouldn't let anyone catch her by surprise this time.

Once she got to the bottom of the steps she unlocked the car and ran to it before rummaging down the side of the passenger seat for the phone. Thank god, it was there. She shoved it in her pocket and closed the car door before quickly jogging back up the front steps.

'Excuse me.' A voice called just as she got to the top of the steps.

She turned around, her heart in her mouth but then she relaxed when she saw who had called her.

'You dropped your keys.' He said, holding them out to her.

'Oh.' She said. 'Thanks!'

He smiled, and then she watched him frown - probably as he caught a better look at her wild eyed expression.

'Are you alright?' He asked. 'You don't look very well.'

'What?' She said. 'Oh yeah, I'm fine. Thanks.'

He stepped up the bottom couple of steps and handed her the keys, then watched as she fumbled in the lock to open the door again.

'Let me help.' He said, walking up behind her and taking the keys from her before pushing them in to the lock and pushing the door open. 'There.'

'Thank you.' She said. 'Sorry I don't know what's come over me. I'm not normally like this!'

'No worries. Everyone has bad days.'

She looked at him, intrigued. Suddenly he looked sad. Curiosity got the better of her and her anxiety began to melt away.

'Are you alright?' She asked.

He shrugged. 'Yeah. Just a bad day for me too, I guess. I've lost my phone and I can't call my Mum. She's gonna kill me. I should have been home an hour ago.'

Georgie looked him up and down. He didn't look much older than Sam.

'Do you want to borrow mine?' She asked. 'You should call her, I'm sure she'll just be glad you're safe.'

'Are you sure?' He asked. 'I don't want to trouble you.'

'It's no bother.' She said, pulling her phone out of her pocket. Then she groaned when she saw that the battery had died, again.

'This damn phone!' She said. 'I just need to grab a charger. I'll be back in a minute, ok? Come inside for a moment.'

'Ok.' He said, following her inside and closing the door behind him with a satisfying click


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter nineteen

'Here we are.' Georgie said brightly as she reached the bottom of the stairs. She looked up and was surprised to see that he was no longer in the hallway. 'Hello?' She called, her brow furrowing.

The house was quiet now and she poked her head around the living room door - no sign of him there either. She walked through to the kitchen and then saw him sitting at the dining room table.

'Oh there you are.' She said, holding the charger up. 'Now where did I put my phone?'

He said nothing but shuffled in the chair, his eyes fixed on the table.

'Are you alright?' She asked.

After a few seconds he looked up at her, a completely different expression on his face. His friendly, childish demeanour had disappeared and now he looked angry and unsettled. Georgie's pulse began to quicken as she glanced around the kitchen for her phone.

'Er.. I'll go and see if it's out there..' she began, heading for the door but he was a lot quicker than her and suddenly he was in front of her, a knife in his hand, his eyes wild like an angry lion.

'Sit down!' He ordered, and she put her hands up, stepping away from him.

'Ok, ok.' She said. 'What are you doing? Please put that down.'

'Sit down and shut up!' He shouted.

He was only short and skinny - she was sure that she could overpower him if she really tried. However she kept thinking of the tiny baby inside her, and how one slip of that knife could be game over for both of them. Reluctantly she slid in to one of the dining room chairs.

'All this has to stop, do you hear me?' He demanded, the knife still pointing at her. 'Just do as I say and everything will be ok.'

He looked a little bit scared and Georgie thought he was probably trying to reassure himself as much as her.

'What has to stop?' She asked, keeping her voice level and calm.

'You know!' He said angrily. 'Don't pretend you don't!'

'I honestly have no idea what you're talking about.' She said. 'If you tell me, I'm sure we can work something out. But please can you put that down?'

'What, so you can run away?!' He said. 'Like everyone does?'

He looked scared and vulnerable, and instinctively Georgie wanted to give him a hug. He was only a child. Then her mind wandered back to Kenya when she had thought the same about a much younger child soldier who had ended up luring her in to an ambush. Not everything was always as it seemed.

'What's your name?' Georgie asked. 'I'm Georgie.'

He narrowed his eyes, and she waited patiently.

'Jack.' He said eventually.

'Ok.' She said. 'Can you tell me why you're here, Jack?'

He looked down at the floor and then dropped his arm down by his side, still holding the knife. Then he looked up at her, his eyes filled with tears.

'I just want my Dad back.' He said. 'You have to stop this.'

'What are you talking about?' Georgie asked. 'Who's your Dad and what has any of this got to do with me?'

'Don't act like I'm stupid!' He yelled, angry again. 'Why does everyone lie to me?!'

'I'm not lying to ya.' She said. 'I promise. You can trust me, Jack. Just tell me why you're here and everything'll be ok.'

He hesitated but she kept her eyes on him, willing him to continue.

'I know you're having an affair with my Dad.' He said.

'What?' Georgie said. 'I'm not having an affair with anyone, I'm married.'

'Married?' Jack said, his eyes widening. 'So he's lied to you, too?! He can't be married to you because he's already married to my Mum!'

'I don't understand.' She said, running a hand through her hair.

'I saw you!' He said. 'I saw you together, last week. He came here. I followed him after he left us. And I saw him with you.'

Georgie frowned. She had absolutely no idea what he was talking about.

'I promise you, Jack. I'm not having an affair with anyone. You've got this all wrong. I'm married to my husband, Charlie - we're having a baby together. So please can you put the knife down and we'll talk about all this properly.'

'Charlie?!' He spat. 'Oh my god he's been lying to you too, hasn't he?'

Georgie shook her head, still completely confused.

'It's been going on for years hasn't it?' He said. 'All those times he said he was working away, he was here with you. For weeks on end. And then he'd come back to us for a few days and then he'd be off again. You do know Charlie isn't even his real name?'

'His name is Charles.' Georgie said. 'I've known him for years, Jack. I promise you. You've got this all wrong.'

'Don't lie to me!' He shouted, striding across the table and grabbing her by the hair, the knife waving inches from her face. 'If you lie to me again I'll cut that baby right out of you, do you understand? He won't be there for it anyway, just like he's never been there for me! You're better off without it!'

Georgie nodded, her heart now thumping in her chest. 'Please... let me go. Please.'

This wasn't working. He was becoming even more erratic. Georgie's teeth chattered and her whole body shook with adrenaline, the feeling of her hair being pulled bringing back memories of being hauled in to the truck by the terrorists in Kenya. She closed her eyes and thought about Elvis swooping in on a helicopter to save her, then Charlie sitting by her bed in the hospital once she was safe. But this time there was no helicopter and nobody even knew she was here, being held hostage in her own home.

'Please.' She whispered, tears escaping from her eyes. 'Please let me go.'

Suddenly she heard a key fumbling in the front door lock and then his voice shouting her name. Her heart leapt, she had never been so relieved to hear his voice. Within seconds he had stormed in to the kitchen, his eyes wide with horror at the situation unfolding before his eyes.

'Jack?' He said.

Georgie's stomach turned - Charlie knew him?

'Sir?' Jack said, his hands trembling. He loosened his grip on Georgie's hair slightly and she sighed with relief, her scalp felt as though it was on fire. 'What are you doing here?'

'This is my house.' Charlie said. 'What the hell are you doing here? Let my wife go and drop the knife.'

Jack looked from Charlie to Georgie, and back again. Georgie looked at Charlie pleadingly. Charlie's heart was pounding in his chest as he thought about how vulnerable their baby was inside her. One slip of the knife and... it didn't bear thinking about.

'Come on, mate. Put the knife down and we can talk.' Charlie said. 'Please? She's pregnant mate, I don't want anything to happen to her. Please.'

Jack's hands trembled again and he looked at Georgie who now had tears pouring down her face. And then his eyes narrowed.

'She's been lying to you, Sir!' He roared. 'She's sleeping with my Dad behind your back! I bet the baby's not even yours! That's why he's left us, isn't it? To be with you?!'

Charlie shook his head. 'What?' He said. 'Jack, you must have got it wrong. I trust Georgie. She would never do that to me.'

'I saw him!' Jack said. 'I saw him here with my own eyes! At the door.'

'When?' Georgie asked desperately. 'When did you see him?'

'Last week.' He said. 'He arrived and I saw him hug a little girl. That little girl.' He pointed to a photo of Amelia which hung on the wall.

Georgie's heart almost stopped and she stared at Charlie in shock. Suddenly it all made sense.

'What's your Dad's name?' Charlie asked.

'Rob.' Jack said, his head bowed as tears began to spill from his eyes.

Charlie seized his chance. Like lightning he leapt across the kitchen and grabbed Jack's wrist, twisting the knife away from Georgie as she managed to escape. He pressed Jack against the table and he dropped the knife with a clatter on the tiled floor.

'Grab it.' Charlie said. 'Quick.'

Georgie took the knife and moved way out of the way, in the doorway.

'Are you alright?' Charlie asked her.

'Yeah I'm fine.' Georgie said.

'Now.' Charlie said. 'We're going to talk about this like adults, ok Jack? If I let you go are you going to be able to do that?'

'Yeah.' Jack nodded, tears streaming down his cheeks.

'Good man.' Charlie said. He released Jack and sat down next to him at the table.

'Why did you throw a brick through our window?' Charlie asked. 'Why did you come here and threaten my wife? In our home?'

Jack sobbed, dipping his head in to his hands. Despite how frightened he had made her feel, Georgie felt sorry for him. He was just a devastated, lost boy, broken by his parents actions.

'I thought she was having an affair with my Dad.' Jack said. 'I thought... if she realised someone knew, she'd stop. And he would come back to us.'

Georgie shuffled in the doorway. 'I should call the police.' She said. 'You attacked me.'

'I didn't hurt you!' Jack said. 'Did I? I just wanted to scare you. I wouldn't have actually done it.'

'I didn't mean that.' Georgie said, and both Jack and Charlie looked up at her. 'On Friday... in the car park.'

'What do you mean?' Charlie asked.

Georgie wasn't sure who looked more confused, him or Jack.

'I called you earlier because I remembered.' She said. 'On Friday I didn't pass out. I was attacked from behind as I was getting out of my car.'

'And you think that was me?!' Jack cried. 'It wasn't, I swear. I didn't do it!'

Charlie stared in disbelief at Jack for a moment, and then he shook his head.

'It wasn't him.' He said. 'It couldn't have been him.'

'How do you know?' Georgie said. 'You weren't there.'

'Because I was with him at school before I left.' Charlie said. 'That's why I was late. I only just got there on time, and I drove. So there's no way he could have been in that car park.'

Georgie and Charlie stared at each other in disbelief, struck by the realisation of what that meant.


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter twenty

_Rob sat in his car waiting, his palms sweaty and his legs restless. He had been waiting for an hour for Charles to get home in that stupid old banger he drove around in. Now he was getting impatient. There was only half an hour to go, and he had to be leaving soon - otherwise he would miss the appointment._

_Luckily Rob was organised. He knew what he was doing. He had a very specific aim - to get Molly and Amelia out of the country, before his wife found out and ruined it all. For the past year, he'd had the most amazing time with Molly. She was head strong, brave and passionate - a world away from the boring wife he had at home, always moaning at him when he got back from a business trip. He had met Molly at a bar one night, he had been away on a business meeting and they had clicked instantly. He hadn't been looking for anyone at the time but he just couldn't get her out of his mind. Luckily she had tracked him down, and they had met up again and again. Before he knew it he was telling his wife he was going on longer and longer business trips, and he was spending weeks on end with Molly. They slipped in to each other's lives well, and when the opportunity came up at work to move to Canada he had jumped at the chance. It was the perfect way of escaping from his old life, and starting a new life with Molly. And she would be none the wiser._

_He hadn't been keen on the thought of taking on Amelia at first, but she wasn't too bad he supposed. He hadn't exactly been the best dad to his son, but he was almost grown up now and Rob barely managed to get a word out of him when he was at home. He just seemed so hostile all the time, and that made Rob even more keen to leave. He had hoped that Molly might decide to leave Amelia behind with Charles and Georgie, but it had become clear to him quite quickly that Molly wouldn't be parted from her. He understood, he supposed. Anyway, at least in the holidays she would be able to come back to the UK and they'd have some time together again, just the two of them. He could live with that. _

_Ten days ago he had left his wife for good. He had been offered the job in Canada and his visa application was going through well. It was time. He hadn't even needed to pack a bag, he was already living a double life, with plenty of possessions waiting for him in the home he shared with Molly. All he had to do was to get Charles out of the way. Then the three of them could leave for Canada, and Molly need never know about his old life, his wife or son. _

_Just as he was about to give up he caught sight of movement. The front door opened and Georgie stepped out, closing the door behind her and then turning her key in the lock. He watched as she walked down the stairs alone and got in to her car. His eyes narrowed as he tried to work out what was going on. Had he got it wrong? No, he couldn't have. He'd heard the conversation himself, with his own ears. With a little help from Amelia he had planted a little microphone right in their house, stitched up conspicuously inside a teddy bear he had given to Amelia to take to their house. The plan had worked like a dream. As luck would have it they'd had a conversation about the appointment in perfect proximity to the teddy bear, and he'd caught it all. Although he wasn't exactly sure where the appointment was, he guessed it was probably in the town centre. He had planned to follow Charles and then get him off the road somehow, cause him to miss it. Maybe even rough him up a bit. Make him realise that the best thing was to just let Amelia and Molly go. But now he wasn't even here, and Rob didn't really know what to do._

_He decided to follow Georgie instead. Maybe if he hurt her, Charles would still miss the appointment? Different scenarios were running through his head as he followed her car at a safe distance - he didn't want her to realise it was him. As she pulled up in the car park he knew exactly which solicitors she was heading to. He had pulled up around the corner and then walked over to the car park on foot, and that was when he got his opportunity._

_If he got them to be scared enough, maybe they'd realise that their home wasn't the safest place for Amelia after all - and they'd let her go._

_He quickly ran across the car park, ducking down between parked cars so that she didn't see him approach. He pulled the hood up of his jacket and when he only had about 10 metres to go he saw her get out of the car and close the door, before rummaging in her bag for her keys. Here was his chance. He ducked back up and ran up behind her as lightly as he could, and just as she began to speak to him he grabbed her head and shoved it against the car as hard as he could, before watching her fall to the floor. And then, adrenaline pumping he ran back to his car. _

_When he got to the car he glanced around quickly and got in before anyone saw him. As he pulled back round the corner past the car park he saw someone crouching down on the floor next to Georgie, who was still down. He smirked. He was sure that Charles would soon be arriving, and when he saw Georgie he would have no choice but to miss the appointment. It was all going to plan. _

_He drove back to Molly's, his heart racing with adrenaline. She would be so pleased with him when she knew the lengths he had gone to, in order to make their dream a reality. If they got to Canada she would no longer have to work, she could be the Mum to Amelia that she wanted to be and yet they would still have a lovely lifestyle because of his well paying job. A far cry from the meagre lifestyle Amelia would have if she lived with her Dad._

_Rob smirked to himself as he pulled up on the driveway, imagining Charles panicking when he found out that his precious Georgie had been hurt. _

...

Rob was enjoying a glass of wine in the garden when he heard the sirens.

'Sounds like somethin's goin' down.' Molly commented, not looking up from the book she was reading.

'Yeah.' Rob said, stretching back in his chair and closing his eyes, enjoying the warmth of the sun.

Within a minute their quiet morning was interrupted by the sound of someone hammering on the front door.

'What the-' Molly said, as she heard what they were saying. 'Did you hear that?'

'Yeah.' Rob said with a frown, his heart now thumping hard at the realisation that perhaps someone might be on to him. 'Don't worry, I'll get it.'

She didn't listen and so she followed him to the front door, where they were greeted by two police officers.

'Can I help you?' She began to say, but it was like they couldn't even see her - one of the officers pushed forward and looked straight at Rob.

'Robert Lewis?' She said sternly.

'Yes.' He answered.

'I'm arresting you on suspicion of the actual bodily harm of Georgina James on Friday 17th June. You do not have to say anything but it may harm your defence if you do not mention when questioned something which you later rely on in court. Anything you do say may be given in evidence.'

Rob stepped forward nonchalantly.

'There's no need for those.' He said gesturing to the handcuffs. 'I'm not going to resist.'

'Rob?!' Molly said incredulously, as he began to follow them to the car. 'What the bleedin' 'ells goin' on?'

He stopped for a couple of seconds and looked up at her on the front step of their house.

'I'm sorry Molly.'

'Sorry for what?!' She cried.

'I just wanted to make you happy.' He said, and then they led him to the car.

Molly watched as the car drove off and then she sank down on to her knees, the front door still wide open. She couldn't make sense of this - any of it. He had been at home last Friday - Georgie had already asked her - so this couldn't be right? Suddenly she felt sick as she remembered that Rob had got home a little later than usual that day. Usually he was home by lunchtime on Fridays but he had been held up in the office.

She held her head in her hands as tears began to leak from her eyes. What had she done to deserve this? This morning they had been so happy, enjoying a day together while Amelia was at nursery, making plans for Canada. Rob had spoken to his solicitor the day before and it was all sorted, he had a plan of action and was quietly confident that he would get Charles to desist in his fight to stop them leaving. And now here she was, on her own again, having been let down by a man she thought she could trust.


	21. Chapter 21

**Note - thank you to everyone who is still reading and reviewing. Sorry for the delay in uploading this chapter, life has got in the way this week and I'm now about 1/3 of the way through my book so I am trying to keep the pace going. Anyway hope you enjoy, there will be two more chapters after this and then I'll probably be taking a break from fan fiction for a while. Thanks so much for your ongoing support and words of encouragement :) **

Chapter twenty one

Charlie watched the police car drive away through the window next to the front door, with Jack sat in the back seat. He felt mixed emotions - he was angry, sad and worried all at the same time. Most of all he was angry at Rob for what he had done to Georgie. It was just as well that the police had found CCTV footage of the car park promptly and were taking him in to custody, as if they hadn't Charlie would have had absolutely no control over his actions. Every time he thought about Georgie being hurt when she was pregnant with his child he felt rage bubbling up inside him. He was angry at Jack for his actions but he also felt sorry for him. He was just a lost teenager, upset by his parents' split and his father's terrible actions towards him. And he was also angry at Molly for allowing Rob in to their lives. What if he had done something to hurt Amelia? Charlie couldn't bear to think about that.

He clenched his jaw and took a deep breath as he used one of the coping mechanisms he had learnt long ago during his therapy. He breathed out and felt his muscles relax, and at the same time he pictured all the anger being expelled from his body. Suddenly he felt Georgie's arms slink around his body from behind and her hands came to rest on his belly, her head resting on his back. He took her hands in his and squeezed them.

'Are you sure you don't need to go to the hospital?' He asked.

'I'm fine.' She said. 'Honestly. He didn't touch me.'

'I think you should still get checked out.' He said, turning in her arms so that they were facing.

'The baby's fine, Charlie.' She said softly. 'Stop worrying.'

He reached down and gently swept her hair back off her face with his finger tips, before kissing her gently on the forehead.

'Every time I think about what that bastard did to you...' he said through clenched teeth. 'I could kill him.'

'I know.' She said. 'But I'm ok, and he's in custody now. He'll get what's coming to him.'

Charlie pulled her close to him and she felt his heart beating hard against her cheek.

'I can't believe Molly let this happen.' He said.

Georgie tilted her head and looked up at him. 'Well she might not have known, don't jump to conclusions. He might have lied to her too.'

'Mmm.' Charlie replied, before leaning back and taking her face between his hands, his thumbs lightly skimming the edge of her face affectionately. 'If anything had happened to you, Georgie... I don't think I could get through it.'

She smiled lovingly at him, enjoying the feeling of safety she felt when she was close to him. 'Well it didn't.' She said. 'You don't need to worry about me.'

He leant in to her until their noses were touching and then he kissed her, slowly at first but as he felt the warmth of her body against his he couldn't help but get carried away. Before he knew what he was doing he had her pressed against the wall and he kissed her more passionately, his hands cupped around each side of her jaw firmly as she kissed him back.

'Steady on.' She smiled, pulling away from him for a moment. 'Anyone could see us.'

'I don't care. There's something about you I just can't resist.' He said huskily, before he went in to kiss her again and she ran her hands through his hair, their hearts thumping hard against each others bodies. Georgie leant up and began to unbutton his shirt but before she got the chance to take it off him properly there was a knock at the door, and he sighed with frustration, leaning his forehead against hers as they both caught their breath.

'Fucking impeccable timing.' He joked, and she rolled her eyes with a grin.

'To be continued.' She said, and they both laughed.

He straightened his shirt before turning to open the front door, where he was faced with Molly.

'I'm so sorry.' She said, catching sight of Georgie who was a few metres further down the hallway. 'I honestly had no idea what he'd done.'

Charlie narrowed his eyes and stared at her. She seemed to be telling the truth.

'It's ok.' Georgie replied instead, walking down the hallway and standing next to Charlie.

'Jesus!' Molly said as she caught sight of the now fading bruise which still surrounded Georgie's eye. She was visibly horrified, and they could both tell she was telling the truth. 'I promise I had no idea what he'd done to you.'

'I know. He lied to all of us.' Georgie said. 'You, us, his wife...'

'Wife?' Molly asked, a look of confusion on her face. 'What do you mean, wife?'


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter twenty two

Georgie walked in to the living room with a fresh cup of tea for Molly and set it down in front of her on the coffee table.

'Thanks.' Molly said, so quietly it was almost a whisper.

She was sat next to Charlie on the sofa. She had barely spoken since they had told her about Rob's double life. Charlie glanced at the clock on the wall.

'What time does Amelia need collecting?' He asked.

'Um... 12.30.' Molly mumbled and then looked up at the clock. 'Oh shit. I'd better go and get her.'

'I'll get her.' Charlie said. 'You stay here, as long as you need.'

'Thanks.' Molly said miserably. It felt strange being in their home, being comforted by them with her latest relationship in tatters. It was almost ironic.

Charlie and Georgie exchanged a small nod and then he left, picking up his car keys on the way out.

'What do I do?' Molly asked softly, and then tears began to spill down her cheeks again. 'What did I ever do to deserve this?'

'Nothing!' Georgie replied, getting up and moving to sit next to her. She instinctively put her arm around Molly and pulled her close. 'Nothing at all. He's just a shit, Molly. None of this is your fault.'

For a moment none of the past mattered and Molly relaxed in Georgie's embrace. It almost felt like they were friends, if Molly forgot for a second who was holding her.

'What do I do?' She asked, pulling out of Georgie's hold.

Georgie shrugged. 'What you always do. Get on with it. I know it seems shit now but you will get through this. Focus on Amelia.'

Molly nodded. 'I'm sorry about all this...' She said, her voice trailing off. 'I honestly did think Canada would be an amazing opportunity for Amelia. I didn't agree to it to deliberately hurt you and Charles.'

'I know.' Georgie said. 'I know you didn't.'

Georgie glanced at Molly again, the pain and confusion in her eyes reminded her of the day she had lost Elvis. Charlie had been there to comfort her then, to hold her until she was weak from crying and she had no tears left. But who did Molly have now? Suddenly Georgie felt a pang of guilt that she hadn't felt in a very long time.

'I never meant to hurt you, Molly.' Georgie said. 'When Charlie and I got together it just happened... I honestly believed you two were over.'

'We were.' Molly said. 'It just took time to get over it, you know. But we hadn't been right, not for a long time. His PTSD drove a wedge between us. And he wasn't the only one to blame, I could have done more. I knew the signs, I just... I don't know. I felt like he'd mentally checked out of our marriage and there was nothing I could do to help him. And I couldn't do it anymore. You were there for him when I wasn't.'

They sat in silence for a bit and then Molly drank a few sips of her tea. She glanced around the room at the framed photos on the walls; Georgie and Charles on their wedding day, Charles with Amelia on his shoulders at the park; all three of them snuggled up on the sofa. Molly felt a small smile play on her lips as she looked at her daughter's delighted face.

'I hated you, for a bit.' She said.

'I know.' Georgie said. 'I understand. I probably would have too.'

'I don't now though.' Molly said. 'Honestly. Amelia is lucky to have so many people who love her.'

'I really do.' Georgie said. 'Like she's my own.'

The two women sat side by side on the sofa for a while until the silence was broken by the sound of Charlie's key in the lock and then Amelia's excited babble as she entered the house.

'So Mummy's here?' She squealed. 'All of us together?'

'Yes, Amelia.' Charlie replied. 'All of us together.'

She squealed again and then ran in to the living room before jumping in to Molly's arms.

'Hi Mummy!' She said, and Molly held her tight, squeezing her in to her and breathing in her scent. That scent was the best sort of medicine for her.

'Hi, Georgie!' She leaned across and put her arm around Georgie quickly, before jumping down off the sofa and running to her toy box.

Georgie and Molly laughed. Molly rubbed at her damp eyes, keen not to let Amelia see that she was upset. But as Amelia pulled a toy out of the box and returned towards Molly, her smile faded and she frowned, raising a hand to Molly's face.

'Oh Mummy.' She said. 'What's wrong?'

'Nothing, darling.' Molly said, but she couldn't stop fresh tears from falling from her eyes.

'Mummy's just a bit sad.' Georgie said.

'Aww, Mummy.' Amelia said, wrapping her arms around Molly's neck and squeezing her tight. 'It's ok. Shh. I'll look after you.'

At that moment, Molly realised she didn't need anyone else. Amelia was all she needed, and together they could achieve whatever they wanted to.

'I love you so much.' She said to her, burying her face in to the little girl's neck.

'I love you too, Mummy.' She smiled, planting a big kiss on Molly's lips. 'Forever and ever.'


	23. Chapter 23

Chapter twenty three

6 months later

Molly smiled as she watched her daughter spin around in the falling snow, a delighted smile plastered across her face. She giggled with excitement as a snowflake landed on her nose.

'Amelia, look - like this!' Molly grinned, poking her tongue out and patiently waiting for a snowflake to land on it.

Amelia roared with laughter and poked her tongue out just like her Mum.

'Mummy look!' She squealed, her eyes wide with excitement as a snowflake landed on the very tip of her tongue. 'Mmm, yummy!'

Molly laughed and threw her head back, looking up to the sky which was heaving with snow clouds. It had been such a long time since she had felt so free and so happy. Life had become so mundane and hard that she hadn't stopped and thought about doing things just for fun. Coming out here to Canada was the best decision she had made in a long time. She and Amelia were having the time of their lives.

'Mummy, my hands are cold.' Amelia mumbled, holding them up to Molly.

'Shall we go and get a hot chocolate, then?' Molly asked.

'Yeah! Yeah!' Amelia said, jumping up and down.

'Come on then.' Molly said, lifting Amelia up in her arms and holding her snowsuit clad body tightly to her.

Molly pushed the heavy double doors open and they trudged in to the lobby. It was very grand. Once upon a time Molly would have felt out of place in a hotel like that, but she had got over that now. She had served her time, served her country, and now she felt she was just as entitled to set foot in a place like this as anyone else.

'Wow!' Amelia breathed, looking up at the big crystal chandelier which hung over the lobby. 'Are we really having hot chocolate here, Mummy?!'

'Yeah if you like!' Molly smiled, pulling her down the corridor towards the lounge.

They took a seat on a sofa near the window which gave them a good view of the lake. Amelia pulled her gloves off and rubbed her hands together, her little fingers red with cold.

'Oh, Baby!' Molly said, taking her hands between hers and giving them a good rub. 'Come here!'

The waitress set down two hot chocolates in front of them and before Molly could warn her, Amelia took a big gulp before spitting it straight back in to the cup with a yelp.

'Amelia!' Molly hissed, looking around her at the other guests who wouldn't have been amused to see such table manners. Luckily nobody seemed to have noticed. 'Blow it first, remember?'

'Sorry Mummy!' Amelia said, munching on the chocolate chip cookie that accompanied her drink.

The moment was interrupted by the buzzing of Molly's mobile in her pocket and she pulled it out, before looking at the screen.

'Oh, it's Daddy.' Molly said.

'Daddy!' Amelia cried with excitement. Molly glanced at the clock at the top of the screen. It must have been late at night back in the UK. She wondered why he was calling so late.

'Hi.' She said, as the call connected and his face appeared on the screen.

'Daddy! Daddy! Look at my hot chocolate!' Amelia beamed, cookie crumbs now all around her face.

'Wow, looks good!' Charlie smiled back at her. Molly narrowed her eyes, she couldn't work out where he was.

'Is everything alright?' Molly asked.

'Yeah, Yeah. Everything's fine.' He said, his face positively beaming. 'Listen there's someone I need you to meet.'

The camera lens moved and scrabbled around in the darkness before it focused again on a tiny little bundle in a towel, being held securely in Georgie's arms.

'Meet your little sister.' He said proudly.

'A sister?!' Amelia asked in amazement.

'Yes, a sister.' Charlie replied. 'What do you think?'

'Cute.' Amelia smiled nervously.

'Congratulations.' Molly said. 'I thought she wasn't due for another couple of weeks?'

'She wasn't.' Georgie replied softly. 'She decided to make an early appearance.'

'Can I hold her?' Amelia asked. 'When I get back?'

'Of course.' Georgie said. 'She's been saving her best cuddles for her big sister.'

Molly felt a pang of jealousy in her stomach at the thought of the four of them together, cosying up together. Things could have been so different if they hadn't ended how they had with Charles. It could be her holding another baby in her arms. Still, Amelia was delighted, and clearly Charles was very happy now - and she too was moving on with her life. She had to hold on to that.

'Our flight lands at 3pm on Saturday.' Molly said. 'We could come over after if you like? We'll get a train back and then head over?'

'I'll pick you up.' Charlie said. 'If that's alright with you, Georgie?'

'Yeah, course.' She said. 'You guys can stay for dinner, I can't promise to cook but we can grab a takeaway or something.'

'Sam will be there too.' Charlie said, and Amelia grinned with excitement.

'Ok.' Molly said. 'That would be nice, thanks. Anyway we'd better leave you to it, I bet you're exhausted.'

'Yeah pretty exhausted.' Georgie sighed, looking down at the squishy newborn wrapped in a blanket in her arms. 'I wouldn't change her for the world though.'

'Bye.' Charlie said, blowing a kiss at Amelia.

'Byeeee!' She smiled with a wave, and then the call ended.

Molly looked down at her daughter's beaming face and then picked up her hot chocolate before gulping it down.

'Right.' Molly said. 'How about we go and try out that ice skating you wanted to do?'

...

Charlie pulled a fleece blanket over himself and Georgie, their tiny baby sleeping peacefully on her chest. Georgie opened her eyes and gazed at him lovingly as he planted a gently kiss on her forehead.

'Thank you.' He whispered.

'For what?' She asked.

'Everything.' He said. 'Giving me another beautiful daughter. Understanding. Always being there for me.'

'You're too soppy.' She grinned, before stroking the baby's cheek gently with her little finger. 'She looks just like you, you know.'

He placed his hand gently on their baby's tiny body and sighed contentedly, putting his other arm around Georgie so that she could rest her head on his chest.

'You're always so understanding about Amelia and Molly and Sam... and I'm so grateful. It means the world to me to be able to have a relationship with all of my children. And I know it's probably hard sometimes because I don't get so much time to show you I care... but I do.'

He kissed the top of her head and she closed her eyes.

'I love them too.' She said. 'And when you're happy, I'm happy. I wouldn't have had a child with you if I didn't think you were a good Dad.'

'Well I haven't always been one.' Charlie admitted. 'But since being with you I feel like I've managed to turn it all around. And really that's down to you.'

'You need to give yourself a bit more credit than that.' Georgie said, tilting her head up so she could see his face. 'It's not been easy, the past few years. But you got through it. And I'm so proud of you.'

Charlie held her tightly to him and closed his eyes, thinking about all the things he would do with his daughter that he hadn't been able to with Sam and even Amelia. He would be there for her every single day, and he would never have to share her or say goodbye for the week because there was no way he would ever split up with Georgie. She was the one for him - it may not have been love at first sight, but there had always been something there even if neither of them had really seen it until the day they lost Elvis. It had taken a tragedy for them to see it. And now, after everything that had happened, it felt as though it was meant to be all along.

**Note - thanks so much to everyone who has followed this story, I hope you have enjoyed it! I am going to take a break from fan fiction writing for a while as I concentrate on my book, but I'm sure I'll be back at some point - and I'll still be eagerly following other CJ and Georgie fan fictions, I love reading other peoples' work. **

**I'm hoping to have the book finished by the end of the year and would like to do something with it if I can get it to a high enough standard, so if you'd like to know of any updates please follow me on Instagram rosiej34 or private message me and I'll grab your email address. Unsurprisingly it is a romance with a military theme, and I hope you will become as invested in the characters and the story as we all are in Georgie and Charlie. **

**Once again thanks again :) **


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